BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand will hold a much-delayed general election on Feb. 24, 2019, the Thai Election Commission said on Tuesday, after the military junta lifted a ban on political activity, which it had imposed after taking power in a coup in 2014. The military junta imposed the strict ban on political activity citing the need for order, which came after months of street protests against the democratically elected government of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The military junta began easing the ban on political activity in September, when it allowed political parties to resume organizing ahead of an election expected in February. The Thai Election Commission confirmed the Feb. 24 election date on Tuesday, just before a statement announcing the ban on political activity had been lifted was published in the Royal Gazette. Thailand last held a successful election in 2011 but the Thai Election Commission said it was ready to go ahead with the Feb. 24 poll.

Source: Egypt Independent December 11, 2018 12:56 UTC