A base belonging to the anti-junta Yaw Defence Force (YDF) in Magway Region’s Htilin Township was attacked by junta troops last week, forcing resistance fighters to abandon the site and some 20m kyat (US$10,800) worth of supplies.
The site, called Shwe Som Nyo, is located near Htilin’s border with Mindat in Chin State, YDF Battalion 15 information officer Kyaw Gyi said.
He explained that on June 29 a clash had broken out between a 200-soldier Myanmar army column and the Mindat-based chapter of the Chinland Defence Force (CDF) at a location just a few miles from the YDF post, which was seized and destroyed the following day.
At the time of the military ambush, nearly all the members of Kyaw Gyi’s battalion were reportedly off-site on a separate operation, leaving the Shwe Som Nyo base vacant.
Because of this, there were no YDF casualties, the spokesperson added.
“The ones who were left in the base didn’t have weapons that were good enough to fight back against the junta, even with the help of the CDF, so they just abandoned it,” Kyaw Gyi explained.
Among the property seized was 11 motorbikes, solar panels, household appliances and handmade weapons. The YDF had reportedly managed to salvage and move food supplies such as rice prior to the attack.
After overrunning the YDF base, the 200-soldier junta column active in Htilin and Mindat reportedly divided into two units in order to launch further assaults in the area, particularly in western Htilin.
Four YDF battalions engaged in a clash with the entire column on July 2, according to Kyaw Gyi, who claimed that several Myanmar army soldiers were killed in the incident.
Myanmar Now was unable to verify the extent of the casualties.
Around 1,000 people from nine villages in western and northwestern Htilin fled their homes as a result of the recent fighting, according to a local man providing assistance to displaced civilians.
“They’re in need of medicine. Many children are getting sick due to the weather these days,” he said, referring to the heavy seasonal rains.
He added that the displaced villagers also required petrol in order to leave the area by road, but that there was a shortage of fuel at the time of reporting.
The Yaw Region, made up of Gangaw, Htilin and Saw townships in Magway, remains a resistance stronghold and site of frequent junta raids and offensives.
