Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi fully vaccinated amid spike in cases

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Aung San Suu KyiImage source, Reuters
Image caption,

Little has been seen or heard of Aung San Suu Kyi in recent months apart from her brief court appearances

Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, her lawyer has confirmed to the BBC's Burmese service.

It comes as Myanmar is battling a surge in cases, the effects of which have been felt as far as China.

Medical services in the country have buckled since the February coup, with health workers walking out in protest.

Only 2.8% of Myanmar's 54m population are fully vaccinated, with 3.5M doses having been administered.

It is unclear when the 76-year-old former leader received the jabs, or which vaccine she was given.

Little has been seen or heard of her apart from her brief court appearances after she was removed from power and detained by the military.

Myanmar saw a record high of 3,602 new cases on Tuesday - an effect also felt in the bordering Chinese city of Ruili, which reported 15 cases the same day.

According to AFP news agency, Myanmar is trying to secure more vaccines after receiving 1.5 million doses from India and 500,000 from China earlier this year.

Dining in at restaurants in the capital Nay Pyi Taw has been banned since Monday, and more curbs are expected to come, AFP added.

Ruili has also now been placed under lockdown since Monday - the second time in four months after finding imported cases from Myanmar.

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Residents in Ruili queuing to get tested for Covid-19

All 210,000 residents of the city have also been tested for the virus in an effort to stem the outbreak.