UN envoy calls for international solidarity with Myanmar people

The UN special envoy for Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, has called for international solidarity with protesters in Myanmar and described her dismay at the deaths there during the weekend.

In a statement, she said she had "personally heard from contacts in Myanmar heartbreaking accounts of killings, mistreatment of demonstrators and torture of prisoners over the weekend."

"The ongoing brutality, including against medical personnel and destruction of public infrastructure, severely undermines any prospects for peace and stability," she said.

Schraner Burgener called on the international community to join together, including regional actors, "in solidarity with the people of Myanmar and their democratic aspirations."