Local media claim that as many as nine people have died in Myanmar in deadly clashes between security forces and protesters across the country, with videos showing police abuse.
In a day of violence across Myanmar on Wednesday, security forces opened fire on protesters resulting in numerous deaths and many injuries, just one day after a regional diplomatic push attempted to end the month-long crisis.
The deadliest clashes came in Monywa. The Monywa Gazette reported that five people were killed in the central Burmese town as police fired on protesters. The agency accompanied the news with photos of the five dead, adding that a further 30 were injured while some remain unaccounted for.
Videos from the town show police dragging away the dead bodies of protesters.
Meanwhile, two protesters were reported dead in the country’s second-biggest city Mandalay. A doctor said that a young individual was shot in the chest while a 19-year-old young woman was shot in the head.
Media reports also claim that there was one left dead in the former capital of Yangon while another protester was shot in the central town of Myingyan, a student activist said.
“They marched toward us and fired tear gas, marched again and used stun grenades,” a protest leader in Myingyan told Reuters. “Then they didn’t spray us with water cannon, no warning to disperse, they just fired their guns.”
Numerous videos have been posted online with the hashtag #mar3coup showing the heavy-handed tactics of the security forces who confronted the anti-coup protests. One video shows detained demonstrators being loaded into trucks while in another clip a soldier can be seen firing on bystanders filming from their balcony.
More footage appears to show medical workers being forced from their vehicle and beaten by officers.
The country has been in a state of chaos since February 1, when the military seized control and detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi and many of the country’s high-ranking civilian officials.
The coup, which was justified by claims of fraud in the November 2020 election, has been widely condemned throughout the world and has triggered nationwide demonstrations against the military.
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