Up to 7,000 refugees are expected to flee post-coup unrest in Myanmar's cities by the end of April, an ethnic rebel group said Wednesday, claiming hundreds were already in militia-controlled areas.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi from power in a February 1 coup, triggering a mass uprising that has seen security forces mount deadly crackdowns against protesters.

The anti-coup movement has garnered broad support across the country, including among some of the country's armed insurgent groups which have for decades been fighting Myanmar's military for more autonomy.

An estimated one-third of Myanmar's territory — mostly in its border regions — is controlled by a myriad of rebel groups, who have their own militias.

Since the coup, the Karen National Union (KNU) — one of the largest armed groups in the country — has seen hundreds of people flee to its territory in southeastern Karen state near the Thai border, an official with the group said.

"We think it could increase to between 6,000 and 7,000 people by the end of April," the KNU's general secretary Saw Tah Doh Moo told AFP.

He added that so far people fleeing anti-coup unrest had been activists, protesters and MPs with Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party.

"Those who are now sheltering are more at the leaders' level, but if they (the military) keep pressing… it could be the broader population," he said.

The KNU has already seen fresh clashes with the military in its territory since the coup.

Besides people fleeing unrest in the cities, KNU territory currently has 5,000 Karen people displaced from local fighting that has been ongoing since December.

"It's our position, from our humanitarian point of view, that we have to give some shelter to these people who are in our area," he said.

Authorities in neighbouring Thailand's Tak province say they are preparing for a potential influx of refugees from Myanmar, and can support between 30,000 and 50,000 people.

About 90,000 refugees from Myanmar have lived in limbo on the Thai side of the border for many years after fleeing decades of civil war between the military and ethnic armed groups.

But Saw Tah Doh Moo said he thinks a further exodus to Thailand is unlikely.

"It's different because the people are more committed to (fighting) the coup," he said.

Outrage at seven-year-old killed in Myanmar crackdown
Yangon (AFP) March 24, 2021 –

The shooting death of a seven-year-old girl in her own home triggered fresh outrage at Myanmar's military crackdown on Wednesday, with at least 20 children reported killed since the junta took charge last month.

The regime has unleashed a deadly wave of violence as it struggles to quell nationwide protests against the February 1 ouster and arrest of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The 75-year-old Nobel laureate has a court hearing scheduled Wednesday as she faces a series of criminal charges that could see her permanently barred from political office.

There was chaos overnight in Mandalay with barricades burning, arrests, homes raided by security forces, beatings and machine guns ringing out over multiple neighbourhoods, local media reported.

Three people were killed on Tuesday including Khin Myo Chit, 7, shot dead at her home in Mandalay, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a local monitoring group.

AFP has yet to independently verify the girl's death.

Aid group Save the Children and AAPP both say that at least 20 people aged under 18 have been killed in the crackdown.

"We are horrified that children continue to be among the targets of these fatal attacks on peaceful protestors," Save the Children said in a statement.

"The safety of children must be protected under all circumstances and we once again call on security forces to end these deadly attacks against protesters immediately."

The charity said it was also extremely worried about "hundreds of young people" being held in detention.

Myanmar's junta on Tuesday defended its seven-week crackdown, insisting it would not tolerate "anarchy".

AAPP has verified 275 deaths since the coup, but warns the toll could be higher, and says more than 2,800 people have been detained.

Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun put the death toll lower at 164, and branded the victims "violent terrorist people" at a Tuesday news conference in the capital Naypyidaw.

– Suu Kyi back in court –

Suu Kyi has another legal hearing in a Naypyidaw court on Wednesday.

But her lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said it was not certain to go ahead because of problems with video conferencing caused by a junta-imposed internet shutdown.

"The hearing may not commence… the court has no wifi," he told AFP.

"If she can not participate in the video conference there won't be a hearing."

He added that on Wednesday morning there was a large police presence outside the court gates and lawyers were not being allowed into the building.

Khin Maung Zaw said he has still not been able to speak to his client privately.

Suu Kyi faces several criminal charges, including for owning unlicensed walkie-talkies and violating coronavirus restrictions by staging a campaign event in 2020.

She is also being investigated for corruption allegations.

The military junta alleges the detained chief minister of Yangon confessed to giving Suu Kyi $600,000 in cash, along with more than 11 kilograms ($680,000 worth) of gold.

The junta has also been targeting the media.

Thein Zaw, a photographer for Associated Press, who has been charged with "spreading false news" is also due to appear in a Yangon court on Wednesday.