Myanmar protesters hold ‘silent strike’against military junta

City streets deserted during nationwide demonstration following massacre of villagers by soldiers

The streets of many towns and cities across Myanmar were deserted on Friday as the public held a silent strike" to protest against the military government, days after a massacre of villagers that has provoked international condemnation.

Reports of the killing of 11 villagers, including children, in Sagaing region on Tuesday, were described by the US as credible and sickening". A spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) warned of an alarming escalation of grave human rights abuses in Myanmar".