Myanmar activists to hit streets in fresh protests

Myanmar pro-democracy activists plan to resume street demonstrations on Thursday, a day after a nationwide silent strike saw businesses shut and people stay at home in protest against military rule in the Southeast Asian country.In a sign of further international pressure over a Feb. 1 coup, the United States is planning to impose sanctions on two conglomerates controlled by Myanmar's military, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.Marking a switch in tactics by protesters, Wednesday's silent strike left normally bustling areas of commercial hubs like Yangon in the south and Monywa in central Myanmar deserted.
While the scale of the street protests had been dropping in recent days, activists called for a big demonstration on Thursday.The strongest storm comes after the silence," protest leader Ei Thinzar Maung said in a social media post.