Myanmar official defends 4-month detention of US reporter

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s military-installed government has defended its detention of an American journalist it has now held for four months, without offering any details of the crimes it alleges.

A military spokesman did not elaborate at a news conference to a question about Danny Fenster, a Detroit area native and managing editor of the online news and business magazine Frontier Myanmar.

He is awaiting trial on a charge of incitement for allegedly spreading false or inflammatory information, which carries a penalty of up to three years in prison.

He was among about 100 journalists detained since the Feb. 1 takeover.

Resistance to military rule was initially met with widespread street protests, but security forces used deadly force, killing more than 1,100, and now face violent counterattacks.