Myanmar’s Junta Extends Ceasefire With Rebels Following Devastating Quake

Myanmar’s military government will extend a ceasefire it declared after last month’s 7.7 magnitude earthquake until the end of April, junta officials announced Tuesday, following calls by humanitarian groups and diplomats to ease relief efforts, Agence France-Presse reported. 

The junta said the truce with the country’s various armed groups would be extended until April 30 “to continue the rebuilding and rehabilitation process with momentum,” but warned it would retaliate if rebels launched attacks. 

Myanmar was struck by a devastating quake on March 28 that killed more than 3,700 people and left around two million in “critical need of assistance and protection,” according to the United Nations. 

The junta initially declared a 20-day ceasefire shortly after the quake, with the original truce set to expire Wednesday. 

However, conflict monitors and residents in affected areas reported that fighting continued on both sides despite the ceasefire, just after the quake. 

Myanmar’s military has been battling ethnic armed groups across the country since its February 2021 coup, which overthrew civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. 

Separately, China on Tuesday sent a team to monitor a separate ceasefire it had brokered between the junta and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), an ethnic Chinese rebel group that captured key territory in northern Shan State last year, Reuters added.  

Following talks in Kunming in January, both sides agreed to a truce, with China pledging to continue to push for peace.