Aung San Suu Kyi meets Red Cross official, Myanmar says

Myanmar's president's office said detained democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi met International Committee of the Red Cross representative Arnaud de Baecque on Monday morning, the first publicised meeting between her and a foreign official since the military ousted her in 2021.

The office said de Baecque, the ICRC resident representative to Myanmar, met Suu Kyi in Myanmar. It also released photos showing Suu Kyi shaking hands with a man who appears to be de Baecque, cutting a birthday cake, and a cake with the words "Happy Birthday Aunty Suu". AFP said the images could not be immediately verified, though AI tools found no instances of fabrication.

The military deposed Suu Kyi in February 2021, jailed the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and triggered an ongoing civil war. She was detained after the coup on a series of charges that rights groups say were created to sideline her.

Min Aung Hlaing, the coup leader and former junta chief, was installed as civilian president in April after highly restricted elections. Later that month, Suu Kyi, now 81, was moved to house arrest after Min Aung Hlaing said he had commuted the rest of her sentence.