Myanmar junta leader inspects polls in second phase of military-run election

Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing visited polling stations in Yangon on Sunday (January 11) as voters cast ballots in the second phase of a military-run election many Western countries and human rights group dismissed as a sham.

The polls follow the 2021 coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi and plunged the country into civil war, killing more than 16,000 and displacing millions.

Suu Kyi’s party and other opposition groups have been dissolved, while rebel forces refuse to participate.

The junta says the vote will bring stability, but Western governments and rights groups say it lacks credibility.

A final round is set for January 25 amid ongoing conflict in large parts of the nation.

Production: Zaw Naing Oo/Reuters