Beijing’s support for the vote raises fears it will ultimately endorse a sham ‘civilian’ government, helping to extend military rule in a new guise.

The Arakan Army, which controls Mrauk-U, said it would report the airstrike to international agencies as a war crime.

Interim leader Muhammad Yunus urges world support as Cox’s Bazar struggles with 1.3 million Rohingya refugees.

By taking back full control of the Phayaung Taung area from the harried People’s Defense Forces, the junta has reclaimed another strategic position in Mandalay.

A Rohingya community leader says the AA has made considerable progress in healing communal tensions with the Buddhist population.

As embassies seek personal data for advance ballots, Myanmar migrants in South Korea, Thailand, Laos, Japan and Singapore refuse to join a December vote they call a sham.

In a viral Facebook post, the KIO deputy chair invoked Disney’s Lion King to rally resistance unity amid battlefield losses, Chinese pressure and deepening fragmentation.

Myanmar Narrative Think Tank inked a deal with Xinhua as the regime seeks to boost its image abroad and counter Western criticism through China’s Global South initiative.

Junta, TNLA blame each other for the partial destruction of the colonial-era Gokteik Viaduct bridge connecting Mandalay Region to northern Shan State by rail.

The civilian National Unity Consultative Council and Ta’ang Land Council have dismissed the December 28 election as a scam.

Also this week, the regime pushed back Karenni forces, set an election date, and campaigned for turnout in a vote covering only a fraction of the country.

Fueling a farce.

Far from being fatally weakened, as many analysts predicted, the military regime is coming back stronger and taking back lost territory. Have we been asking the wrong questions all along?

The regime has demanded information, including the political leanings of family members, of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry leaders.

Union-level officials can go to their intended constituencies and plan their campaigns, but canvassing is not expected to start till October.

Ferrari & Associates founder says the case was ‘based on its merits’, but declines to identify his three clients, known to include junta arms dealers.

Bangkok court dismisses charges, but the future of his political dynasty still hangs in the balance as his daughter, PM Paetongtarn, faces her own ruling next week.

The regime has scaled back its plans for an election on December 28 with observers dismissing the process as a sham.

The regime is rallying a cast of prominent military loyalists to front its poll farce.

The United Wa State Party said Beijing’s sanctions had forced it to end military and financial aid to its allies the TNLA, MNDAA and SSPP.

The regime is fighting to recover territory from the Ta’ang National Liberation Army ahead of the election it has promised for December 28. 

For Beijing, peace-making abroad is never altruistic but always being put in the service of economic or geopolitical advantage, says Rishan Sen.

Unidentified resistance fighters ambushed a junta outpost in Sagaing Region on Sunday while regime forces were raiding surrounding villages.

Resistance reports fierce fighting as regime’s Operation Yan Naing Min pushes to retake towns, villages, and key routes in southern Shan and Karenni states.

Repatriation of around 1 million refugees to Myanmar on the agenda, but experts question international commitment to sustainable solutions for the crisis.   

For decades, the Myanmar military has employed Washington’s sharpest lobbyists to improve its image on the global stage—with invariably disastrous results.

This week’s Irrawaddy editorial discussion asks if China can achieve its goal of creating a stable Myanmar.

Shutdown of No. 2 Friendship Bridge from Myawaddy to Mae Sot catches Thailand off guard, disrupting $120 million in monthly trade and boosting fuel prices in Karen State.

Joe Kumbun explains why the victorious AA has halted its conquests in Rakhine, and three townships remain under junta control—for now.

Visiting Magwe, a resistance stronghold, the junta boss claimed his planned poll has international backing; he urged troops and locals to ‘do their duty’ and vote.

Locals fear fresh fighting and regime airstrikes, as public anger grows over mediator China’s silence on civilian casualties.

Karenni State’s Interim Executive Council said the airstrike was the deadliest ever in the state and urged global action in response to the junta’s war crimes.

At least two children were killed in the aerial massacre in Mawchi, a town that has been controlled by the Karenni resistance since January 2024.

The Three Brotherhood Alliance has cemented control of a key China-Myanmar trade gate, turning it into a steady revenue source and a test of its governance capacity.

Fierce fighting is reported on the main trade artery to Myawaddy, gateway to Thailand.