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The top UN official in Myanmar has harshly criticized the US for lifting sanctions against allies of the country’s ruling military regime, calling it a “major step backward”

The UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, described the decision as “shocking.” On July 24th, the US quietly lifted sanctions against five individuals and businesses allegedly connected to the regime’s arms trade.

According to Andrews, “This is a significant step backward in international efforts to save lives by restricting the murderous junta’s access to weapons.” By reversing sanctions against Myanmar’s arms dealers and junta cronies, it is “unconscionable to undermine these efforts.”

In a 2021 coup that overthrew the Aung San Suu Kyi government, senior general Min Aung Hlaing led the military to take control of the country, which has sparked criticism for the decision.

According to Andrews, the businesses that were put on the sanctions list were connected to the regime’s military operations.

According to Andrews, “the sanctions against the junta are proving to be effective,” adding that data from the years 2023 to 2024, which he attributed in part to US-led sanctions, makes this action even more appalling.

The move comes despite US President Trump’s statement in February that extended the executive order enshrined Myanmar-related sanctions, saying the 2021 coup “continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat” to US national security.

The US representative also claimed that the military regime bombed civilians and enlisted Rohingya to fight on its behalf in a statement to the UN in June.

Two weeks after Myanmar’s military chief praised US President Donald Trump in a glowing letter, the government made the decision to ease sanctions. The president’s administration defunded US-backed media outlets that criticize the regime, according to the general in the letter.

The administration’s top official claimed that the sanctions decision had no bearing given the letter.

However, critics claim that the timing is troubling. The action, according to John Sifton, director of human rights watch’s Asia advocacy division, “suggests a major shift is underway in US policy, which had focused on punitive action against Myanmar’s military regime.”

Andrews urged the Trump administration to change course. The US should be expanding the sanctions to Myanmar Economic Bank, the important financial institution that the country relies on to pay for imported military equipment, rather than removing them.

Kim Le Court, a Mauritian, won the first stage of the women’s Tour de France.

The 29-year-old took the fifth stage honors on Wednesday in a race to reclaim the leader’s yellow jersey, which was a case of double celebration.

After the longest Tour of the Tour, which included 166 kilometers of climbs, Le Court surpassed Dutch duo Demi Vollering and Anna van der Breggen.

Marianne Vos, the overnight leader, lost her yellow to the AG Insurance-Soudal team leader, whose eighth-place finish was 33 seconds adrift on the day.

Le Court now leads France’s Pauline Ferrand-Prevot by 18 seconds after a brief stint at the top of the general classification after stage two.

“The Tour has really started off like a dream.” Le Court praised the stage victory and the yellow jersey.

When we first arrived in Brittany, I wasn’t even considering it.

We’ll see what happens next because I have no idea what my limits are in the mountains because this Tour is my first major stage race in which my team has asked me to compete for the overall classification.

After recovering from a severe fall on Monday, Vollering, the Tour champion in 2023 and favorite for this edition, is now third at 23sec.

Poland’s Katarzyna Niewiadoma, who won the previous year’s stage, placed fourth overall, 24sec clear of the leader.

A local government spokesman reported that German biathlon champion Laura Dahlmeier, who had collapsed while climbing at a remote site reportedly had to be saved due to bad weather, had died on a mountain in northern Pakistan.

When Dahlmeier, a medal-winning Olympic climber, collided with a survivor while climbing Laila Peak in the Karakoram Mountains on Monday, she was struck by falling rocks.

According to Faizullah Faraq, a spokesman for the regional Gilgit-Baltistan government, rescuers were able to confirm Dahlmeier’s death on Wednesday, but because of unfavorable weather, they were unable to retrieve the body.

According to Faraq, any final decision regarding the body’s retrieval would be made in accordance with Dahlmeier’s family’s wishes. It was her wish that no one would risk their lives when they recovered her body after an accident, according to a statement on Dalhmeier’s Instagram page.

Dahlmeier’s parents were expressly condoled by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who wrote that she “was an exceptional sportswoman.” He brought up the moment he gave her the Silver Laurel Leaf, the highest award in German sport, shortly after she won her first gold medal at the 2018 Olympics.

According to him, Laura Dahlmeier served as our nation’s ambassador for the world and served as a model for peaceful, content, and fair coexistence across borders.

Authorities launched the rescue mission on Monday after Dahlmeier’s climbing partner, Marina Eva, received a distress signal on Tuesday and managed to reach base camp with assistance from rescuers.

According to the statement on Dahlmeier’s Instagram page, the partner of hers had attempted to save her for several hours, but it was in vain due to the challenging terrain and persistent rockfall. According to the statement, “Her partner, who could no longer discern any signs of life, ultimately decided to leave the danger zone and resume her descent.”

No one should risk their lives in a situation like this, according to Dahlmeier’s express wish, which was later reiterated in the statement, pleading for that wish to be honored. The rescue team and climbers, who made her rescue possible, were praised by Dahlmeier’s family members.

Foreign climbers who died while attempting to summit mountains in Pakistan are typically rescued at the families’ request, but if the family declines to rescue them, the remains are left where they were.

According to her management team in Germany, Dahlmeier, age 31, was injured at a height of about 5,700 meters (18,700 feet) on Monday at noon.

Since the end of June, Dahlmeier and friends have been visiting the area. The 6, 069-metre (20, 000-foot) Laila Peak was the second peak on her tour after she climbed the 6, 287-metre (20, 626-foot) Great Trango Tower on July 8.

According to Faraq, military helicopters were on standby for any rescue, but due to bad weather, they were unable to deploy. According to him, two Americans and two climbers have been attempting the same ascent that Dahlmeier did in an effort to join the rescue operation.

According to her website, Dahlmeier won 20 World Cup competitions, seven gold medals, three silver, and five bronze medals at the 2016-17 World Championships.

In 2018, she won gold in the individual competition and gold medals in the sprint and pursuit events at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

At the age of 25, Dahlmeier ended her biathlon career. After deciding to end her biathlon career, she returned to the German Alps’ Garmisch-Partenkirchen and began mountaineering expeditions. She volunteered for the Garmisch-Partenkirchen mountain rescue team and earned a state-certified mountain and ski guide designation since 2023.

In northern Pakistan, avalanches and sudden weather changes cause accidents frequently among climbers who attempt to scale mountains each year.