Thousands Join Protests in Myanmar's Yangon After Military Coup, Reports Say

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Several thousand people took to the streets in Myanmar's largest city Yangon on Saturday to participate in the first mass protest against military rule since the recent coup, media reported.

Demonstrations broke out on Saturday morning after the Southeast Asian country went into its second nationwide internet shutdown since the military seized power and arrested civilian leaders on Monday.

According to photographs posted by the news portal Mizzima, police officers in bulletproof vests with riot shields blocked the main roads, while crowds marched flashing a three-finger salute, which has become a symbol of the fight for democracy and was used by Thai and Hong Kong protesters.

A protester holds an image of the detained Myanmar civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a demonstration condemning the military coup outside the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok on February 4, 2021, days after Myanmar's security forces detained Suu Kyi and the country's president.

© AFP 2023 / MLADEN ANTONOV

Demonstrators were also wearing red, the colour of the National League for Democracy, whose government was overthrown by the military.

People on motorcycles raise a three-finger salute as take part in a protest against the military coup, in Dawei, Myanmar February 5, 2021 in this picture obtained from social media. Dawei Watch/via REUTERS

© REUTERS / Dawei Watch

The portal added that hundreds of people were detained during the protests, while the news website Frontier reported that the demonstrations were peaceful and police officers were inactive.

Myanmar's military overthrew the government on Monday and declared a year-long state of emergency after accusing State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi's party of fraud over its recent election victory.