London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Aug 04, 2026

Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi kidnapped and 'detained by military'

Telephone and internet communications are down in Myanmar's capital amid possible coup. It comes amid tensions between the civilian government and the military, stoking fears of a coup.

At elections in November, the NLD won enough seats to form a government, but the army says the vote was fraudulent.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, was ruled by the military until 2011. Ms Suu Kyi spent many years under house arrest.

The newly elected lower house of parliament was due to convene for the first time on Monday but the military was calling for a postponement.

There are soldiers on the streets of the capital, Naypyitaw, and the main city, Yangon.

NLD spokesman Myo Nyunt told the Reuters news agency by phone that Ms Suu Kyi, President Win Myint and other leaders had been "taken" in the early hours of the morning.

"I want to tell our people not to respond rashly and I want them to act according to the law," he said, adding he also expected to be detained.

Telephone and internet lines in Naypyitaw have been cut, the BBC's Burmese Service reports.

Soldiers also visited the homes of chief ministers in several regions and took them away, family members said.
On Saturday Myanmar's armed forces promised to abide by the constitution as concerns grew that they were preparing to stage a coup.

What happened in the election?
The NLD won 83% of available seats in the 8 November election in what many saw as a referendum on Ms Suu Kyi's civilian government.

It was just the second election since the end of military rule in 2011.
But the military has disputed the result, filing complaints at the Supreme Court against the president and the chair of the electoral commission.

Fears of a coup rose after the military recently threatened to "take action" over alleged fraud. The election commission has rejected the allegations.

Who is Aung San Suu Kyi?
Aung San Suu Kyi is the daughter of Myanmar's independence hero, General Aung San. He was assassinated when she was only two years old, just before Myanmar gained independence from British colonial rule in 1948.

Ms Suu Kyi was once seen as a beacon for human rights - a principled activist who gave up her freedom to challenge the ruthless army generals who ruled Myanmar for decades.

In 1991, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, while still under house arrest, and hailed as "an outstanding example of the power of the powerless".

Ms Suu Kyi spent nearly 15 years in detention between 1989 and 2010.

In November 2015 she led the National League for Democracy (NLD) to a landslide victory in Myanmar's first openly contested election for 25 years.

The Myanmar constitution forbids her from becoming president because she has children who are foreign nationals. But Ms Suu Kyi, now 75, is widely seen as de facto leader.

But since becoming Myanmar's state counsellor, her leadership has been defined by the treatment of the country's mostly Muslim Rohingya minority.

In 2017 hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled to neighbouring Bangladesh due to an army crackdown sparked by deadly attacks on police stations in Rakhine state.

Ms Suu Kyi's former international supporters accused her of doing nothing to stop rape, murder and possible genocide by refusing to condemn the still powerful military or acknowledge accounts of atrocities.

A few initially argued that she was a pragmatic politician, trying to govern a multi-ethnic country with a complex history.

But her personal defence of the army's actions at the International Court of Justice hearing in 2019 in the Hague was seen as a new turning point that obliterated what little remained of her international reputation.

At home, however, "the Lady", as Ms Suu Kyi is known, remains wildly popular among the Buddhist majority who hold little sympathy for the Rohingya.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Apple Seeks Court Order to Stop OpenAI Using Alleged Trade Secrets
Breaking With the Past: One of the World’s Smallest Countries Changes Its Name
AI Is Remaking the US Economy, From GDP Growth to iPhone Prices
Comcast: Tied to a Chair and Hit in the Face With Cake: The Regular Humiliation Ritual at the US Corporate Giant
Aston Martin Faces Legal Threat Over £550m Rescue Deal
Reform UK Wants the Royal Navy to Return Channel Boats to France
US and Japan Step In to Support the Yen in Rare Joint Intervention
NHS Spends £240m a Year Storing Paper Records Despite Digital Push
Badenoch Defends Tory Candidate Jailed for Antisemitic Abuse of Luciana Berger
The AI Pricing Problem: Companies Cannot Predict Their Own Bills
Europe’s Heat and Drought Are Now Disrupting Power, Shipping and Tourism
Apple’s OpenAI Lawsuit Becomes a Public Fight Over AI Hardware
UK Man Jailed After Keeping His Mother’s Body in a Freezer and Claiming £78,000
A SpaceX Rocket Is About to Crash Into the Moon — and Scientists Hope to Watch
World War II munitions discovered after wildfires in southern France
BP profits reach four-year high amid Middle East conflict
Europe’s Drying Rivers Trigger Power Cuts, Factory Shutdowns and Wildfire Emergencies
UK Driver Sentenced to Four Years for Staged Electric Vehicle Brake Failure Fraud
Conservative Party and Reform UK Face Scrutiny During Clacton By-Election Campaign
Ministry of Justice Reviews Early Release Rules After Public Anger Over Police Killer Cases
NHS Radiographers Report Rising Racist Abuse From Patients Across UK Hospitals
UK Banking Regulators Face Pressure After Customer Loses Fourteen Thousand Pounds in AI Voice Scam
Research Challenges Treasury Control Over UK Public Spending and Calls for Greater Local Decision-Making
Home Office Begins Four-Week Weapons Surrender Campaign Across Major English Cities
Southern England Records Driest July in Nearly Two Centuries as Drought Concerns Grow
Apple Challenges UK Government Request for Access to Encrypted User Data in Legal Fight
BP Reports Sharp Profit Increase as Middle East Conflict Drives Global Oil Prices Higher
Nigel Farage Expresses Openness to Potential Alliance with Restore Britain
AstraZeneca Merger Talks Reflect Intensifying Pharmaceutical Consolidation
University Merger May Set Template for Higher Education Reform
Apple's Legal Challenge Highlights Growing Tension Over Encryption and Surveillance
Prime Minister Andy Burnham's Agenda Signals Shift Toward Greater Regional Devolution
Mental Health Trust Faces Criticism Over Planned £25 Million Budget Cuts
Scientists and Cultural Leaders Call for Funding to Save Jodrell Bank Observatory
UK Manufacturing Output Reaches Highest Level in Nearly Two Years
University of Greenwich and University of Kent Complete Landmark Merger
Nigel Farage Unveils Naval Border Proposal Amid Questions Over £5 Million Donation
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Pledges Tougher Action on Small Boat Crossings
Apple Challenges UK Government Over Encrypted Data Access Demands
AstraZeneca Shares Fall After Reports of $400 Billion Bristol Myers Squibb Merger Talks
Triple Lock Lifts UK State Pension but Leaves a Wider Retirement Gap
Danube Drought Forces Hungary’s Paks Nuclear Plant Into Full Shutdown
Ceuta Death Toll Rises as Spain and Europe Clash Over Border Response
Cuba’s Grid Fails Again as Fuel Crisis Deepens
Nazca Lines Flight Crash Kills Thirteen as Peru Suspends Aerodiana
Modern Slavery Decisions Broaden the Al Fayed Inquiry’s Frame
FIFA’s Retreat Leaves a Larger Question Over Who Guards the Game
Two Firefighting Crew Members Die in Helicopter Collision West of Athens
Public Sector Automation Through Artificial Intelligence
Regional Investment Beyond London
×