Detained Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi meets Red Cross official

Myanmar's detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi met with a representative from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the capital Naypyidaw, according to Myanmar authorities. The meeting comes as regional countries pressure for access to the 81-year-old Nobel laureate, who has been in custody since the military coup in February 2021.

Her exact whereabouts and health have been difficult to confirm since the coup, with no foreign leaders or envoys publicly meeting her. The ICRC has not yet commented on the meeting.

Following a series of closed-door trials after the coup, Suu Kyi was sentenced to 33 years in prison on charges ranging from corruption to election fraud and violating state secrets laws. Her supporters maintain these charges are politically motivated and aimed at sidelining her, arguably the country's most popular politician.

The sentence has since been reduced, and further reductions in April leave her with 18 years remaining, according to a member of her legal team. Her son, Kim Aris, previously told Reuters he had received sporadic, indirect details about her heart and bone issues, fearing she might die without his knowledge.

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Aung San Suu Kyi met with Arno de Bec, the ICRC's permanent representative in Myanmar, in Naypyidaw, Myanmar authorities said on Telegram.