Hundreds of children detained by the Myanmar military, minister says

Soldiers stand next to military vehicles in Yangon. A minister in the Myanmar government says the military has detained hundreds of children since the coup last year, with some of them held to ransom. Photograph: Stringer ./Reuters

Hundreds of children have been detained by the Myanmar military since it seized power more than one year ago, with many held ransom by soldiers and police who are seeking to arrest their relatives, according to a minister of the country’s National Unity Government.

Naw Susanna Hla Hla Soe, minister of Women, Youths and Children Affairs Ministry in the NUG, which was formed last year by elected lawmakers to challenge the junta, said 287 children under the age of 18 had been detained since 1 February 2021. Most had been held in police station detention centres, and some in prisons.