junta

Tens of thousands of people have been killed since the military grabbed power in a 2021 coup, sparking a civil war between the junta and allied pro-democracy rebels and ethnic minority armed groups.

The junta announced late Sunday that class was cancelled at schools and universities for two weeks due to the shortages.

A large army contingent in nearby Kati, the ruling junta’s biggest stronghold, was unable to intervene.

But the junta has also faced pressure to shut down scam operations from its military backer China, irked at its citizens both participating in and being targeted by the scams.

The junta has lost swathes of the country to pro-democracy guerrillas and powerful ethnic-minority armed factions, but has touted elections as a path to reconciliation.