Myanmar Police Fire Rubber Bullets at Anti-Coup Protesters

On Tuesday, several people were injured as police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at anti-coup protesters in Myanmar's capital.

Moreover, the Myanmar coup leader gave his first televised address, trying to justify the measure amid mass protests.

In the largest opposition move so far against the military coup, thousands joined protests against the army in Myanmar.

Last Monday, the army carried out a military coup that shocked a country and brought it back into isolation after only years of leaving it.

Meanwhile, roads leading to the main airport were closed, communications were cut off, and the country’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and other officials were arrested.

Demonstrators chanted, “Down with military dictatorship,” while waving red flags, the color of the slogan of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party.

Last Thursday, the government ordered Internet companies to block access to Facebook until this Sunday, and the number of Facebook users is half of the population of 54 million.

Seeking to justify the coup that was condemned by many Western capitals, the army said it was “a necessity to preserve the stability of the country”, accusing the electoral commission of “not addressing the massive irregularities” that took place during the legislative elections last November, in which Suu Kyi’s party won by a landslide.

The United Nations made its first contact with the army in Myanmar, according to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, who renewed the call for the release of the detained officials.

Guterres described the coup as “totally unacceptable”, but the UN Security Council on Thursday adopted a more flexible speech calling for the release of detainees without officially condemning the coup.