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world news Dialuna 28 Maart 2022

Myanmar leader vows to ‘annihilate’ opponents of army rule

(AP) — Myanmar’s leader “terrorist groups and their seems to have expanded its
vowed Sunday to intensify supporters for killing inno- offensive into Chin State in
action against homegrown cent people” and threatening the west and Kayin State in
militia groups fighting the peace and security. the southeast as well.
military-run government,
saying the armed forces He said the military — Last year’s Armed Forces
would “annihilate” them. known as the Tatmadaw — Day was the single bloodiest
“will annihilate them to (the) since the military’s Feb. 1,
Senior Gen. Min Aung end,” according to an official 2021, seizure of power. Secu-
Hlaing, speaking at a mili- translation of his speech. rity forces across the country
tary parade marking Armed opened fire on demonstra-
Forces Day, also urged eth- His government has declared tors, killing as many as 160
nic minorities not to support major resistance organiza- people.
groups opposed to army rule tions — regardless of wheth-
and ruled out negotiations er they are directly engaged in Anti-military protests were
with them. armed struggle — as terrorist held Sunday despite the risks
groups. Membership or even in Yangon, the country’s big-
The military seized power last contact with them carries gest city, and elsewhere. To
year from the democratically harsh punishment under law. avoid arrest or injury, urban
elected government of Aung street protests usually involve
San Suu Kyi. Security forces “I would like to highlight that flash mobs, which quickly
used lethal force to suppress there are no governments or disperse before security forc-
mass nationwide protests, re- armies worldwide that ne- es crack down. the last year, including at least Division, which was accused
sulting in the deaths of more gotiate with any terrorist 100 people killed on this day of burning at least 30 civilians
than 1,700 civilians, accord- groups,” he said. The main opposition group, alone one year ago.” in their cars in Kayah State on
ing to a detailed tally com- the self-styled National Uni- Christmas Eve last year.
piled by the Assistance Asso- Despite a huge advantage in ty Government, urged people It called on the military to
ciation for Political Prisoners. equipment and numbers, to join a “Power Strike” Sun- cease its violence and return The fresh sanctions came the
Myanmar’s military has day night by switching off the to democratic rule, and urged same week that the U.S an-
Forced to turn away from struggled to crush the new lights and their televisions for countries not to supply arms nounced it had determined
peaceful protests, many of militia units. Outgunned and 30 minutes while the military to Myanmar. the military’s actions in a
those opposed to military outmanned, the PDFs have parade is broadcast on state- crackdown on the Rohingya
rule took up arms, forming relied on support from local run TV channels. The U.S., Britain and Canada Muslim ethnic group in 2017
hundreds of militia groups communities and knowledge on Saturday imposed the lat- constituted genocide. A bru-
called People’s Defense Forc- of the terrain to carry out The group said the strike also est in a series of coordinated tal counterinsurgency cam-
es — better known as PDFs. often surprisingly effective is intended to protest daily sanctions on senior military paign compelled more than
In some parts of the country, attacks on convoys, patrols, power outages. The black- officials and business lead- 700,000 Rohingya to flee
they’ve joined forces with guard posts, police stations outs started several months ers who allegedly act as arms from western Myanmar to
well-organized, battle-hard- and isolated bases in remote ago, and the government dealers for Myanmar’s army. Bangladesh, where virtually
ened ethnic armed groups, areas. blames them on high gas all remain.
which have been fighting prices and damage to power The new measures targeted
for greater autonomy for de- The military is currently lines caused by sabotage. three senior military officers The atrocities committed by
cades. conducting operations in including the newly appoint- the army against the Rohing-
Sagaing, in upper central The United States, the Eu- ed chief of the air force and ya have been well document-
Min Aung Hlaing, address- Myanmar, and in Kayah ropean Union and 20 other four alleged arms dealers as ed by U.N. investigators, and
ing thousands of military State, in the country’s east, countries issued a statement well as the companies linked the World Court is consid-
personnel during the parade using airstrikes, artillery bar- marking Armed Forces Day to them. Washington also ering a charge of genocide
in the capital Naypyitaw, said rages and the burning of by recalling “those killed and imposed sanctions on the against the Tatmadaw.
he would not negotiate with villages. The army recently displaced by violence over army’s 66th Light Infantry

German state election offers 1st test since Scholz took over

(AP) — The western Ger- cember. Democratic Union party of political tone for the coming leader, Friedrich Merz, is
man state of Saarland is former Chancellor Angela year. The most important downplaying the significance
holding an election Sun- Polls before the election for Merkel. vote, on May 15, is in Ger- of his party’s poll showing
day that offers the coun- the state legislature point many’s most populous state, before Sunday’s vote, citing
try’s first test at the ballot to a solid lead for Scholz’s That doesn’t necessarily have North Rhine-Westphalia. local factors.
box since Chancellor Olaf center-left Social Democrats much to do with what has
Scholz’s national govern- in a region led since 1999 by been a turbulent first 100 Saarland, located on the “We have always been good
ment took office in De- the center-right Christian days for Scholz’s three-party French border, is one of Ger- in Saarland when the left
coalition, during which Rus- many’s smallest states with was divided, and that is over
sia’s war in Ukraine prompt- nearly 1 million residents. now,” Merz said.
ed the chancellor to upend It has been run for the past
German defense policy and decade by a coalition of the He pointed to a sharp decline
Germany to welcome large CDU and the Social Demo- in support for the hard-left
numbers of refugees. Ger- crats. Left Party, whose co-found-
many also is grappling with er — Oskar Lafontaine, a
a persistent wave of coro- This time, polls show Social one-time Social Democrat
navirus infections, recently Democrat Anke Rehlinger — who was Saarland’s gover-
seeing over 200,000 cases per the state’s deputy governor nor in the 1980s and 1990s
day. and economy minister since — recently left the party. It
2014 — as voters’ favored only narrowly avoided be-
All the same, it’s the first of candidate. Center-right in- ing ejected from the German
three state elections within cumbent Tobias Hans is trail- parliament in September’s
two months — all in regions ing. national election.
currently led by CDU gover-
nors — that will help set the The CDU’s new national