Junta Boss Bounces Back Post-Surgery to Lay Down Thingyan Festival Rules

Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing made a first public appearance on Tuesday just four days after undergoing spinal surgery, by chairing a junta meeting on fuel security in Naypyitaw.

The elderly general underwent a two‑hour operation on March 20 at the 1,000‑bed military hospital in Naypyitaw, performed by Indian specialists flown in for the procedure.

The regime formally announced the surgery on Monday, saying he had been treated for lumbar spondylosis and spinal stenosis—a painful stiffening of the lower spine brought on by old age—and “already resumed his state and military duties.”