Thailand’s Parliament began a special session Monday that was called to address tensions as pro-democracy protests draw students and other demonstrators into the streets almost daily demanding the prime minister’s resignation.

As Speaker of the House Chuan Leekpai began the session, only 450 of the total of 731 members of both houses had signed in for the meeting.

The demonstrations by student-led groups in the Bangkok and other cities have three main demands: that Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha step down, the constitution be amended to make it more democratic and reforms be made to the monarchy to make it more accountable.

Public criticism of the monarchy is unprecedented in a country where the royal institution has been considered sacrosanct, and royalists have denounced the protesters for raising the issue.

“The only way to a lasting solution for all sides that is fair for those on the streets as well as for the many millions who choose not to go on the streets is to discuss and resolve these differences through the parliamentary process,” Prayuth said last week.

The non-voting session of Parliament is expected to last two days.

The protesters have little confidence in the parliamentary path, declaring the government’s efforts insincere.

They noted the points of discussion submitted by Prayuth’s government for debate dealt not with the protesters’ concerns but were thinly disguised criticisms of the protests themselves.

They concern instead the risk of the coronavirus spreading at rallies, the alleged interference with a royal motorcade by a small crowd earlier this month, and illegal gatherings and the destruction of images of the royal family.

The protesters allege Prayuth, who led a coup in 2014 as the army chief, was returned to power unfairly in last year’s election because laws had been changed to favor a pro-military party. The protesters also say the constitution, written and enacted under military rule, is undemocratic.

Parliament in September was scheduled to vote on six proposed constitutional amendments but instead set up a committee to further consider such proposals, and then recessed.

Constitutional changes require a joint vote of the House and the Senate, but the proposals lack support in the Senate, whose members are not elected and are generally very conservative and hostile to the protesters.

Instead of confronting lawmakers and counter-protesters on Monday, the pro-democracy protest organizers have called for an afternoon march to the German Embassy, apparently to bring attention to the time King Maha Vajiralongkorn spends in Germany.

Germany’s foreign minister, questioned in Parliament by a member of the Green Party, recently expressed concern over any political activities the king might be conducting on the country’s soil.

Protesters’ criticism of the royal institution has roiled conservative Thais. Self-proclaimed “defenders of the monarchy” mobilized last week online and in rallies in several cities, in many cases led by local civil servants.

A small group of royalist demonstrators were outside Parliament on Monday morning, saying they were there to let lawmakers know of their opposition to any changes in the status of the monarchy.

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Malaysia’s king on Sunday rejected a proposal by embattled Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to declare a state of emergency to fight a new outbreak of the coronavirus, reports Malaysia.

The plan by Muhyiddin, which involves suspending Parliament, has sparked national outrage, with critics slamming the move as an undemocratic means for him to hang on to power amid challenges to his leadership.

The palace said in a statement that Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah “is of the opinion that there is currently no need for His Majesty to declare a state of emergency in this country or any part of Malaysia.”

Hours later, Muhyiddin said the Cabinet took note of the king’s decision and will further discuss the decree.

“The priority of the Cabinet and the government at this time is to protect citizens from the COVID-19 disease,” he said in a brief statement. He also welcomed the king’s advice to ensure his government’s stability. Local media said the Cabinet is expected to meet later Monday.

Sultan Abdullah, who earlier Sunday conferred with other royal households on the emergency proposal, said the government has handled the pandemic well and believes Muhyiddin is capable of implementing measures to cope with the crisis. But the monarch called for a halt to “all politicking” that could disrupt the government’s stability.

The king can declare a state of emergency that allows the country to be governed through ordinances that cannot be challenged in court.

Muhyiddin took power in March after instigating the cause of the former reformist alliance, but his government is shaky, with only a two-seat majority in Parliament.

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has alleged that he has the support of a majority of lawmakers to topple Muhyiddin, but hasn’t managed to secure the monarch’s support.

Still, Muhyiddin faces a key test early next month when his government is due to seek approval for its 2021 budget in Parliament. If he is unable to pass the bill, pressure will build for him to resign or call new elections. A state of emergency could allow him to delay that vote and consolidate support.

The king said there was “no need for MPs to continue with irresponsible actions that can affect the stability of the government.” He stressed that the budget is crucial in the fight against COVID-19 and to restore the economy, and urged Malaysians to unite to stem the virus’s spread.

Many Malaysians praised the king’s decision on social media. Despite the king’s rebuff, his endorsement of Muhyiddin’s government may help the premier get the budget bill passed.

Malaysia’s coronavirus cases doubled to more than 26,000 in just three weeks following a new outbreak, mainly in Sabah state on Borneo island.

Politicians from both sides of the divide as well as the Bar Council, the medical association and other groups have said there is no need for an emergency decree because there are sufficient laws to curb public movement and impose penalties to curb the virus. Some also have warned that declaring an emergency could plunge the country into a dictatorship and ruin the economy.

Some media outlets have cited sources as saying that Muhyiddin wanted an “economic emergency” to merely suspend Parliament, without any curfew. The last time emergency laws were invoked nationally was in 1969 during deadly racial riots.

Muhyiddin withdrew his party from Anwar’s reformist alliance that won 2018 elections and joined with the opposition to form a Malay-centric government in March. Then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned in protest, saying he wouldn’t work with the corruption-tainted opposition that he ousted in 2018 polls.

Apart from Anwar, Muhyiddin also faces threats from the key ally in his ruling coalition, which is angry about being sidelined despite being the biggest party.

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Thousands of pro-democracy protesters gathered in Thailand’s capital again on Sunday, seeking to keep up pressure on the government a day before a special session of Parliament that was called to try to ease political tensions.

The rally took place at the busy Rajprasong intersection, in the heart of Bangkok’s shopping district. Few protesters turned out in the first hour of the rally, but their numbers later swelled to several thousand, who listened to rude denunciations of the government in chants, speeches and even songs.

The rally was called Saturday night after Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha ignored the protesters’ deadline to step down, reports AP.

The protesters’ core demands also include a more democratic constitution and reforms to the monarchy. Public criticism of the monarchy is unprecedented in a country where the royal institution has been considered sacrosanct.

The demonstrators charge that Prayuth, who led a coup in 2014 as the army chief, was returned to power unfairly in last year’s general election because laws had been changed to favor a pro-military party. The protesters also say that the constitution, written and enacted under military rule, is undemocratic.

Prayuth’s government last week called the special parliamentary session to seek to defuse weeks of almost daily protests. The session begins Monday and is expected to last two days.

“The only way to a lasting solution for all sides that is fair for those on the streets as well as for the many millions who choose not to go on the streets is to discuss and resolve these differences through the parliamentary process,” Prayuth said last week.

He also lifted a state of emergency that he had imposed a week earlier that made the protest rallies illegal.

The protesters were not impressed by his efforts to appease them, declaring them insincere.

They noted on social media that the points of discussion submitted by the government for debate dealt not with their concerns but were thinly disguised criticisms of the protests themselves.

They concern the risk of the coronavirus spreading at rallies, the alleged interference with a royal motorcade by a small crowd earlier this month, and illegal gatherings and the destruction of images of the royal family.

Protest organizers have called for a Monday afternoon march to the German Embassy in central Bangkok, far from the Parliament complex on the outskirts of the city.

The apparent rationale for the march is to bring attention to the protesters’ contention that King Maha Vajiralongkorn spends much of his time in Germany.

Protesters’ criticism of the royal institution has irked conservative Thais because the monarchy traditionally has been treated as sacrosanct.

Self-proclaimed “defenders of the monarchy” mobilized last week online and in rallies in several cities, in many cases led by local civil servants. On Wednesday, a small royalist rally in Bangkok broke into violence when a few attendees attacked anti-government student activists.

On Sunday, as many as 1,000 royalists gathered peacefully outside Parliament, vowing to stay overnight so they could make known to lawmakers in the morning their opposition to any changes in the status of the monarchy.

Also read: Thai protesters hold ambitious rally for democratic reforms

India’s daily coronavirus cases have dropped to nearly 50,000, maintaining a downturn over the last few weeks, reports AP.

The Health Ministry says 50,129 new cases have taken the overall tally to nearly 7.9 million on Sunday.

It also reported 578 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising  the total fatalities to 118,534.

The ministry also said India’s active coronavirus cases were below 700,000 across the country and almost 7.1 million people had recovered from COVID-19.

India is second to the United States with the largest outbreak of the coronavirus.

Last month, India hit a peak of nearly 100,000 cases in a single day, but since then daily cases have fallen by about half and deaths by about a third.

Some experts say the decline in cases suggests that the virus may have finally reached a plateau but others question the testing methods.

India is relying heavily on antigen tests, which are faster but less accurate than traditional RT-PCR tests.

Read Also: Global coronavirus: Confirmed cases surpass 42.5 mn

The death toll from the suicide attack Saturday in Afghanistan’s capital has risen to at least 18 killed and 57 people wounded, including students, the interior ministry said.

The explosion struck outside an education center in a heavily Shiite neighborhood of western Kabul, Dasht-e-Barchi.

Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian says that the attacker was trying to enter the center when he was stopped by security guards, reports AP.

According to Arian, the casualty toll may rise further as family members of victims of the suicide bombing are still searching the several different hospitals where the wounded have been taken.

No group claimed immediate responsibility for the bombing. The Taliban rejected any connection with the attack.

An Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for a similar suicide attack at an education center in August 2018, in which 34 students were killed. Within Afghanistan, IS has launched large-scale attacks on minority Shiites, Sikhs and Hindus, whom it views as apostates.

Hundreds of Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan fled the country in September after a gunman loyal to the militant group killed 25 members of the shrinking community in an attack on their share a place of worship in Kabul.

The U.S. signed a peace deal with the Taliban in February, opening up a path toward withdrawing American troops from the conflict. U.S. officials said the deal would also help refocus security efforts on fighting the Islamic State, which is a rival of the Taliban in Afghanistan.

There has been an upsurge in violence between Taliban and Afghan forces in the country recently, even as representatives from the two warring sides begin their own peace talks in Doha to end the decades-long war in Afghanistan.

Earlier Saturday a roadside bomb killed nine people in eastern Afghanistan after it struck a minivan full of civilians, a local official said.

Ghazni province police spokesman Ahmad Khan Sirat said that a second roadside bomb killed two policemen, after it struck their vehicle that was making its way to the victims of the first explosion.

Sirat added that the bombings had wounded several others, and that the attacks were under investigation.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks. The provincial police spokesman claimed the Taliban had placed the bomb.