Thousands of protesters gathered in towns and cities despite a message from the Military Council that the confrontation will lead to more deaths
The US Treasury Department said in a statement that the Ministry of Foreign Assets Control Office imposed sanctions on two Myanmar generals due to the February 1 coup, at a time when protests demanding a return to the democratic path and the release of detainees continue.
The ministry confirmed that Washington would work with its partners to pressure the Myanmar army and police to stop the violence against the demonstrators.
The European Union foreign ministers also decided to impose sanctions on the military responsible for the coup.
“The foreign ministers of the European Union decided to impose sanctions that specifically target the economic and financial interests of the military, since they are businessmen in this country and own sectors of the economy,” said European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
Protests continue in Myanmar, and shops have closed in a general strike called to protest the coup.
Thousands of protesters gathered in towns and cities, despite a message from the military council that the confrontation would lead to more deaths.
After 3 weeks of seizing power, the military council failed to stop the daily protests and civil disobedience movement calling for a reversal of the coup and the release of the elected leader Aung San Sochi.
Protests spread
The protests spread to cities and towns across the country, from the northern mountainous region on the border with China to the plains in the center of the country and the Irrawaddy River delta and even the south of the country.
Three protesters were killed since the protests began, two were shot in the city of Mandalay on Saturday, and the funeral of a young woman, who was the first to be killed, drew hundreds in Naypyidaw on Sunday.
For its part, the army said that a policeman died of wounds sustained during protests, accusing protesters of fomenting violence.
Security forces were heavily deployed in the main city of Yangon, where thousands of demonstrators gathered.
The deaths in Mandalay did not deter the protesters, who gathered in large numbers there and in Yangon.
The state-owned MRTV station warned the demonstrators against holding protests, and said, “The protesters are now inciting people, especially enthusiastic teenagers and young men, on the road to a confrontation in which they will suffer loss of life.”
On Monday, Facebook made it clear that it had removed the “MRTV” pages for violating the company’s policies on violence and incitement. On Sunday, the company deleted the army’s home page for the same reason.
The Association for the Assistance of Political Prisoners in Myanmar said that 640 people have been arrested, charged or sentenced since the coup, including former members of the government and opponents of the army’s takeover of power.
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