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Whenever we approach a group of civilians, they start to move towards us, starting a panic. In one incident, we run down from a bridge and take shelter in a monastery, hidden by the monks.

In the late afternoon, I return with two other journalists to the Ngwe Kyar Yan monastery. There are only a few old monks left. First we pretend to be tourists but when we start to ask less innocuous questions we are faced with embarrassed looks. A big man, faking sympathy and interest, shows up. USDA, I guess. Four military trucks appear and soldiers deploy around the monastery. We rush into a taxi. Later I learn that UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has arrived in Rangoon and is being briefed by UN officials. He heads immediately to the capital, Naypyidaw, to meet with the military leaders.

Burma’s state-run media announces that junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe is prepared to meet Suu Kyi, while the UN Security Council discusses the Burma situation. The Security Council issues a unanimous statement saying it “strongly deplores” the regime’s violent crackdown—yet the arrests and intimidation continue regardless.

(Additional reporting by Yeni)