Things appear to be moving with disturbing speed towards a disastrous all-out conflict in Myanmar. There have been reports from defecting military officers that they expect plenty of their comrades to change sides in response to the military junta’s savage treatment of protesting Burmese citizens.

The military, or Tatmadaw, has long been the guarantor of power in Myanmar. Even as the country seemed to be opening up to democracy, the Tatmadaw retained effective control of the country through a powerful constitutional position. But the February coup – and the violent oppression that has followed – might have risked the unity of the armed forces and security services. This could be a critical moment in the crisis. If enough officers desert the military regime there could be a popular revolution. Too few and there could be civil war.

Meanwhile, in neighbouring India, a second wave of COVID-19 has pushed new infections to the highest in the world, with over 168,000 new cases reported in one day this week. And warnings of perilous declines in human sperm counts are being given credence by research into the effects pollutant chemicals are having on the hormonal development of male foetuses.

Jonathan Este

Associate Editor, International Affairs Editor

Will the line break in Myanmar? Robert Boc / Alamy Stock Photo

Myanmar: could defecting security forces bring down the military regime?

Natasha Lindstaedt, University of Essex

History tells us that the stability of a country's security forces is key to the success or failure of a popular uprising.

DIVYAKANT SOLANKI/EPA

As India’s COVID crisis worsens, leaders play the blame game while the poor suffer once again

Sujeet Kumar, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to show decisive leadership in not only controlling the surge of the virus, but also providing financial assistance to millions of urban poor.

The sperm count of western men is falling at an alarming rate. Komsan Loonprom/Shutterstock

Male fertility: how everyday chemicals are destroying sperm counts in humans and animals

Alex Ford, University of Portsmouth; Gary Hutchison, Edinburgh Napier University

Our chemical environment appears responsible for an alarming plummet in sperm counts – in humans and in animals.

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