Myanmar’s ruling military junta today extended the state of emergency that was due to end at midnight last night for a further six months, postponing the elections it has promised since overthrowing the elected government on 1 February 2021.

The junta’s media office said in a statement that the Defence Council, chaired by Min Aung Hlaing, took the decision unanimously in light of the challenges the army faces in ongoing fighting with armed opposition groups in several regions.

The junta’s leadership has come under increasing pressure since the overthrow of Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government in 2021, which led to popular protests that turned into a large-scale armed insurgency.