Myanmar insurgent allies capture Shan state town

An alliance of insurgent forces battling to end army rule has captured a major town in northern Myanmar, a spokesperson for the main group told IJ, in the latest setback for the junta that seized power in a 2021 military coup.

The Ta’ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, and allied forces seized the last base in Shan state’s Nawnghkio town from junta troops on Wednesday, after two weeks of fighting, the spokesperson said.

“We were able to capture the junta’s missile battalion in Nawnghkio town at around 3 p.m.,” the spokesperson told.

The junta has not released any information on the battle, and Shan state’s junta spokesperson, Khun Thein Maung, did not answer inquiries from IJ.

The TNLA, which is part of an alliance of three ethnic minority insurgent forces known as the Three Brotherhood Alliance, ended a five-month ceasefire with the junta on June 25. 

Since then, the group has been fighting for territory in Shan state’s Nawnghkio, Kyaukme, Mongmit and Hsipaw townships, as well as in Mandalay region’s Mogoke township. The alliance has since claimed to have captured at least 26 bases across the north.

The alliance launched an offensive last November, codenamed Operation 1027 after the date it began, and pushed back junta forces in several regions including along northeastern Myanmar’s border with China.

Insurgent forces in other parts of the country have stepped up their attacks since then too, posing the biggest challenge the military has faced in years of conflict.

China, concerned about its economic interests according to Myanmar sources, brokered peace talks in Shan state in January that brought a halt to the conflict there but the truce collapsed late last month and fighting has surged since then.

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Junta airstrikes

Nawnghkio, about 85 km (52 miles) northeast of Mandalay, is on the main road between Myanmar’s second city and the Chinese border. The insurgents are also trying to capture Lashio, the main city in northern Shan state, which is about 120 km (75 miles) northeast of Nawnghkio.

TNLA spokeswoman Lway Yay Oo said Nawnghkio was captured by fighters from the TNLA, the Palaung State Liberation Front, Mandalay People’s Defense Force and Danu People’s Liberation Army. 

The insurgents captured several junta administrative offices and 10 military bases around the city including the headquarters of three battalions, along with 600 weapons, the groups said in a joint statement.

The insurgents posted pictures on social media of their fighters with a captured multiple rocket launcher, two double barrel anti-aircraft guns, as well as rows of captured rifles and other weapons.

Junta retaliation has been fierce, with its forces launching more than 100 airstrikes in Nawnghkio town, the TNLA said. None of the insurgent groups released any figures for casualties amongst their forces.

Ten residents of the town were killed and nine were wounded, the TNLA said, adding that nine houses and two monasteries were destroyed. 

The group blamed the deaths on the junta’s heavy weapons, but Ij was not able to confirm this independently. 

National junta spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun told state-owned newspapers on Wednesday that special attention would be paid to ensuring the safety of civilians  in the renewed fighting.

Nawnghkio has a population of more than 16,000 people but most have fled because of the fighting, residents said.