The UK advised its citizens to flee Myanmar, as a United Nations representative warned the junta appears to be committing “crimes against humanity” in its attempt to stay in power.
Britain, the country’s former colonial ruler, urged its citizens to get out if they can, warning that, “political tension and unrest are widespread since the military takeover and levels of violence are rising”.
It called on “British nationals to leave the country by commercial means, unless there is an urgent need to stay”.
The move comes after Thomas Andrews, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, gave a stark assessment of the crisis.
Myanmar is “controlled by a murderous, illegal regime” that is probably committing “crimes against humanity”, Andrews told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
These crimes probably include “acts of murder, enforced disappearance, persecution, torture” carried out with “the knowledge of senior leadership”, including junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, Andrews said.
While stressing that such offenses can only be determined in court, he said there was clear evidence the junta’s crimes were “widespread” and part of a “coordinated campaign”.
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