New York morning

I've spoken with a senior officer from Myanmar's military who went AWOL just two months ago. As an army major — a signals officer, working around colonels and generals — he has insight into the regime's thinking.

Here's what he told me. (1/x)

theworld.org/segments/2024/…

China building new outpost on U.S. Doorstep, leaked documents reveal newsweek.com/2024/05/03/chi…

For some, events unfolding in the Middle East, tell a story the news media simply isn’t covering. My colleague Matthew Tostevin spoke to them as part of his reporting for this story. It is worth reading. newsweek.com/israel-gaza-ha…

“The generals continue to be divorced from reality, but economic collapse, battlefield losses, escalating violence in the cities and drones buzzing the capital are puncturing their cocoon,” writes ⁦Zachary Abuza⁩ #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar rfa.org/english/news/m…

Myanmar marks the Thingyan holiday and people protest against the junta in multiple places, doing what they can for this new year to be one in which they bring an end to military rule and peace to the country. #WhatsHappeninglnMyanmar

Wishing everyone the best for Thingyan/Songkran and the New Year and may all be blessed with safety, happiness and freedom.

Yet another village set on fire by junta forces in Myanmar. The campaign of arson rarely makes the news but Myanmar Witness is verifying all these events and recording them for the day when perpetrators will be held accountable #WhatsHappeninglnMyanmar

⁦.Twan Mrat Naing⁩ , leader of the Arakan Army (AA), warns that “decisive battles” could break out soon for control of the Rakhine State capital Sittwe and the key port town of Kyaukphyu, and that residents should be prepared to evacuate. myanmar-now.org/en/news/arakan…

#Myawaddy #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar
A humble request to international media colleagues: Please consider passing on the work to Myanmar journalists working in exile in Mae Sot instead of relying solely on inexperienced interns or newly recruited foreign journalists with little…

Many U.S. officials believe this, not recognizing that the Philippines is an outlier in Southeast Asia. In fact, the rest of the region is hedging, and tends to be quite critical of the path that Manila has chosen. The U.S. is losing the narrative battle in most of the region.

The shadow of razor wire on the face of a Venezuelan preparing to breach a fence line into the United States. Powerful image from Adrees Latif | ادريس لطيف

Weeks after Myanmar's military government announced a nationwide draft, two young women from far-flung parts of the Southeast Asian country headed to the jungles to take up arms against the junta.

reuters.com/world/asia-pac…

Myanmar’s military junta is losing on multiple fronts. As the drone attacks showed this week, it can no longer even protect its own capital. #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar bbc.co.uk/news/world-asi…

Rare earthquake felt in New York with epicenter in New Jersey USGS Earthquakes

Pretty astonishing claims coming from Phoenix TV commentator Jin Liang: “If Min Aung Hlaing can’t take care of the domestic situation, then the PLA will be fully prepared.” weibo.com/tv/show/1034:5…

The war in Gaza has given new impetus to a small group of Jews and evangelical Christian allies set on rebuilding an ancient temple where Islamic shrines now stand. Red heifers have been shipped from Texas to prepare for sacrificial rites. newsweek.com/israel-gaza-ha…

The drone attack on Myanmar's junta is also an indication of just how much of the country its opponents now control and how close they are to the capital bbc.co.uk/news/world-asi… #WhatsHappeninglnMyanmar

Strongly recommend following new Financial Times Jakarta correspondent Anantha who will also be covering Vietnam and the Philippines

Whereas Britain has only been recruiting Nepali men to fight its wars for more than 200 years