4th-5th July, 2021

The junta has banned the heads of foreign telecommunications companies from leaving the country, saying they need to seek the approval to travel abroad, the Reuters reported. Qatari Ooredoo and Norwegian Telenor are currently providing services in Myanmar since 2014. The report said the junta has been pressuring these companies to cooperate in implementing the junta’s electronic surveillance systems. Telenor, which has more than 18 million customers, said on 2 July that it is considering whether to continue its operations in Myanmar.

A member of the PDF (Depayin) told Mizzima that the death toll of the PDF member from the July 2nd clash in Depayin Township, Sagaing Region, has risen to 31. The junta troops not only used heavy artilleries but also used the wounded as decoys during the fight. Residents in nearby villages are also fleeing their homes.

According to Myanmar Now, the junta is being supported by companies involved in the gem trade. About 20 businessmen from Yangon, Mandalay, Sagaing and Kachin State were invited to the junta hosted meeting on 30 June. Myanmar's multi-billion-dollar gem trade is a major source of income for the military and one of the areas where many of the coup leaders' family-owned companies operate.

Khit Thit reported that the junta troops raided the residents of Japanese ambassadors and staffs of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Yangon on 17 April. Japan has been a leading donor to Myanmar, but it suspends all the new development aids and continues to press the junta to relinquish power.

Covid-19 infections are on the rise across the country. There are about 20 deaths a day in Kalay, Sagaing Region alone, according to Chin World. The 74 Media reported that the junta’s commander of the Kachin State-based Northern Command and his associates are also infected. Capt. Min Maung Maung, a first-class surgeon from the 14th Field Medical Battalion, has joined the CDM movement, according to DVB.

Ousted MPs of Yangon Region held their parliamentary sessions online on the morning of 5 July. The activities of the Committee Representing Yangon Hluttaw (CRYH) and support for CDM civil servants were discussed, according to NUG's social media page.

Myanmar’s netizens have condemned the Chinese Foreign Minister's July 3 statement about sanctions on Myanmar. At the 9th World Peace Forum at Qinghua University in China, he said the international community needs to do more to promote reconciliation and avoid unilateral sanctions and inappropriate intervention.