Myanmar military stages coup, detains Aung San Suu Kyi

Myanmar's military staged a coup d'etat on February 1, detaining de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint, and other key figures of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) party just before the new parliament was to be sworn in.

Troops fanned out across Yangon and Naypyidaw, establishing a visible presence and disrupting mobile phone services, data connections, and ATM operations.

The military announced a nationwide state of emergency and declared it has taken control of the country for one year, citing unsubstantiated claims of "election fraud."

This action follows the NLD's landslide victory in the November general elections, where the party won 396 out of 476 seats.

The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) won only 33 seats, an outcome that was seen as an embarrassing rebuke to the army.

International observers and local organizations declared the November elections credible and reflective of the majority's will, contradicting the military's fraud allegations.

Myanmar's fragile, decade-long transition to democracy has suffered a devastating setback.