1 October 1999

Burmese rebels storm Myanmar Embassy, taking 89 hostages

Five armed men raided Myanmar’s embassy and took 89 hostages, including 13 Myanmar officials and several foreign nationals.

The dissidents, calling themselves the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors, were armed with assault rifles and hand grenades, and said they were ‘ready to die in action’. One student, who identified himself as Johnny, told a radio station they did not intend to harm any of the hostages, but only wanted to demand democratic reform in Myanmar.

After a tense 25-hour standoff, the crisis was resolved when Thai officials provided a helicopter to fly the rebels to the Thai-Myanmar border in Ratchaburi province in exchange for the release of the hostages. To guarantee their safety, deputy foreign minister MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra travelled with the rebels.

From a jungle hideout inside Myanmar, Johnny said the group had been prepared to kill the Myanmar ambassador, Hla Maung, who by chance had left the embassy just before the armed men stormed the building.

1 October 1999

Burmese rebels storm Myanmar Embassy, taking 89 hostages

Five armed men raided Myanmar’s embassy and took 89 hostages, including 13 Myanmar officials and several foreign nationals.

The dissidents, calling themselves the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors, were armed with assault rifles and hand grenades, and said they were ‘ready to die in action’. One student, who identified himself as Johnny, told a radio station they did not intend to harm any of the hostages, but only wanted to demand democratic reform in Myanmar.

After a tense 25-hour standoff, the crisis was resolved when Thai officials provided a helicopter to fly the rebels to the Thai-Myanmar border in Ratchaburi province in exchange for the release of the hostages. To guarantee their safety, deputy foreign minister MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra travelled with the rebels.

From a jungle hideout inside Myanmar, Johnny said the group had been prepared to kill the Myanmar ambassador, Hla Maung, who by chance had left the embassy just before the armed men stormed the building.