The News
More than 2,000 people have died in Myanmar following a devastating 7.7-magnitude earthquake, the ruling junta said Monday, while hundreds remain missing.
In Thailand 19 people have died, with many still missing, including 75 construction workers, after an unfinished skyscraper collapsed.
International aid and rescue efforts in Myanmar have been difficult, as the country has been wracked by civil war since 2021, with reports of Mandalay residents attempting to rescue loved ones trapped under rubble.
In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, the ruling military junta continued to bomb parts of the country, with the UN calling the strikes “completely outrageous and unacceptable.”
US President Donald Trump’s dismantling of foreign aid has hobbled the international response; rescue workers from China, Russia, and India have arrived, but a US team is not expected until Wednesday — a far slower response than under normal circumstances, The New York Times reported.
The US Geological Service estimated Myanmar’s death toll could exceed 10,000.