ISTANBUL

The military junta in Myanmar announced the formation of a new body to oversee general elections later this year, effectively signaling the end of the state of emergency rule, state media reported.

Junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing appointed himself acting president and issued a decree dissolving the National Defense and Security Council, which was formed in the wake of the February 2021 coup.

The military takeover ousted the elected government led by the National League for Democracy and plunged the country into more than four years of emergency rule.

The move to form the National Security and Peace Commission, led by Min Aung, marks a formal end to the state of emergency in the Buddhist-majority nation.

He also announced the formation of a new government under U Nyo Saw, a close associate of the junta chief.

“The upcoming election will be held this December, and efforts will be made to enable all eligible voters to cast their ballots,” Min Aung said during a ceremony Wednesday in the capital Nay Pyi Taw.

According to the Myanmar Now website, Min Aung has formally assumed the role of acting president ahead of the planned elections.

Later, the National Defense and Security Council announced the formation of a new election commission and named the chairman and members of the Union Election Commission.   

Junta forces kill 24 in airstrikes

Myanmar’s military carried out deadly airstrikes in resistance-held areas of Singu Township in the Mandalay region, killing at least 24 people, including detainees, Myanmar Now reported Thursday.

Junta aircraft bombed a police station in the village of Let Pan Hla, about 8 kilometers (5 miles) east of Singu, killing 21 male prisoners and one female prisoner held on various charges.

Another strike in the village of Shwe Pan Taw killed a man and a woman, according to a statement by the Mandalay Region People’s Defense Forces.