He had a craggy face, a limp, he was 60 years of age and had a resolve that underlined Myanmar’s new drive for democracy.

“I am not afraid to die,” he told me in halting English. “They will only kill flesh and bones. Spirit cannot be destroyed, so in the end we will win.”

Then he walked to the head of several thousand protesters in downtown Yangon and advanced towards the waiting soldiers, stern faced, fingers on the triggers of their weapons. He raised his hand and stood there in a gesture of defiance. It met with applause from the protestors and people who watched the unfolding drama from their windows and balconies.

The soldiers did nothing – but it was only temporary. Minutes later they acted. Two army units closed both ends of the street in a pincer movement that trapped hundreds of civilians. They poured out of their trucks, with guns and batons. Men in civilian clothes joined them with large bamboo sticks.

They waded into the protestors, beating and slashing. I saw people on the ground being beaten and pounded and kicked, blood pouring from head wounds. Others were dragged off to a row of waiting buses.

…the army used the night time curfew to arrest thousands of monks. Something like 2,000 are said to have been taken, along with intellectuals and other public figures like poets and actors. It’s rumoured that many are being held at the race course in the city but it is impossible to get near there. Now the military clampdown is accelerating. Soldiers now stand guard at all the hospitals in the city and a makeshift morgue is said to have been set up.

However, activists on the ground in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, are reporting a death toll of nearly 200 since the government crackdown began on Wednesday, with several hundred more wounded.

Hundreds of others are reported to have been arrested, many of them beaten or seized from their homes in overnight raids.

Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Myanmar says that the protests are now largely made up of students instead of monks.

Brown also thinks the death toll is likely to be climbing into the hundreds, what a shame he doesn’t command any armed forces or have any way to communicate with world leaders and stop this, oh wait.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said he believes the loss of life in Burma has been “far greater” than that reported by the authorities. He was speaking after holding talks by phone with US President George W Bush and Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao.

According to the blog Jotman (h/t Mr. Eugenides & Davide at Nether World) ethnic insurgent groups are gearing up-

Burma’s Karen National Union has issued a call for all ethnic ceasefire groups to rise up against the Burmese regime in solidarity with the people of Rangoon and Mandalay.

Top Generals disagree over the use of violence-

Unconfirmed reports say there are unusual troop movements underway in Rangoon, amid reports that Snr-Gen Than Shwe, the junta’s chief, and Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye, his second in command and the commander in chief of the army, have disagreed over the response to the recent demonstrations.

Diplomatic sources in Bangkok said Maung Aye is scheduled to meet with Aung San Suu Kyi, and that he disagreed with the bloody crackdown that has been underway for three days.

Troop movements and discontent?

Military aircrafts from the Matehtilar airbase are airborne. It is not known why the aircrafts have scrambled. On the other hand there is commotion in the Light Infantry Division 33 and 99 of the Burma Army. The exact nature of the commotion cannot be determined as yet.

Troops marching to Rangoon
There is an urgent report that Burmese troops from middle Burma has started to march towards Rangoon. The reported troops are from Central Command based in Taung Oo and South East Command. At this reporting, it is not clear if the troops are marching to reinforce or to challenge the troops in Rangoon for shooting the Buddhist monks.

Bottom line this is continuing and growing, it is not now over because the government have started to shoot, the resistance is growing and when SLORC captured some monks others took their place, students, general public. Now it’s possible the army is splintering and armed insurgent groups are uniting to fight the government. This is an ongoing struggle and it is a tipping point as in the time that actions will have the most consequences. Help will be the most useful, solidarity the most effective, the news agenda wants new stories, ‘crackdown’ is not the closing chapter. This rebellion is beginning and growing and disparate groups are uniting to fight the Generals who are dividing in their tactics.

“In real life it is always the anvil that breaks the hammer, never the other way about.”
George Orwell- Politics and the English Language.