Myanmar's military regime continued to arrest more individuals on Wednesday following the departure of a UN envoy who had attempted to address the violent crackdown on protests. Witnesses reported seeing at least eight truckloads of prisoners being taken away from downtown Yangon, the country's largest city and the epicenter of recent demonstrations against military rule and economic struggles. In one home near the Shwedagon Pagoda, the only remaining resident was a 13-year-old girl whose parents had been arrested. She mentioned that they were warned not to flee as there could be further arrests. The crackdown in Myanmar continued despite some optimism about progress from UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari's efforts to persuade junta chief Than Shwe to ease his control and engage in talks with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Singapore, as the chair of ASEAN, expressed satisfaction with the cooperation from Myanmar's government towards Gambari. Gambari, on his way back to New York after meeting with Ban Ki-moon, was expected to return to Myanmar in early November, although it was uncertain if his mission and international pressure would influence the junta's policies. There was skepticism about the potential outcomes of Gambari's efforts. David Steinberg, an expert on Myanmar from Georgetown University, believes that the top leadership is deeply rooted in their beliefs and unlikely to change. He mentioned that the junta's claim of being on the path to democracy may not hold much weight. The first step of the junta's "seven-step road to democracy" was completed in September after a 14-year national convention, but critics argue that the resulting constitution will only strengthen military rule and prevent Suu Kyi from holding office. The recent protests, the largest challenge to the junta's authority in nearly two decades, began as small demonstrations against fuel price increases and intensified after troops fired upon a group of monks. The junta claims that the monk-led protests, which spanned five city blocks, were met with minimal force and that Yangon and other cities had returned to normal. They reported 10 deaths and dismissed reports of higher casualties and atrocities as falsehoods. However, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, along with other Western governments, believes the actual death toll is much higher than the official figure of 30. Despite this, the junta believes they have successfully put down the uprising, removing barricades around the Shwedagon and Sule pagodas, relaxing the curfew, and releasing some monks who were detained in monastery raids. One young monk mentioned that 80 out of the 96 taken from his monastery were allowed to return after verbal threats but no physical harm during questioning. However, witnesses reported that there was still a significant armed presence in the streets of Yangon and Mandalay, the second largest city. The military regime has also been sending gangs to search homes for monks in hiding, a tactic that Western diplomats say is instilling fear among the population. International outrage over the brutal crackdown on peaceful protests shows no sign of abating. The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, which includes China as the regime's closest ally, condemned the junta's use of violence. They urged the generals to allow the UN human rights envoy to Myanmar, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, to visit for the first time in four years. Pinheiro stated that thousands of people have been detained. Pinheiro emphasized the importance of bringing to light the events that occurred, while the council passed a resolution expressing sorrow over the beatings, killings, and detentions. Myanmar accused powerful countries of using the hearing for political gain.