At least 24 junta soldiers have died in fighting with the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) in northern Shan State since last week, the group has said, though locals citing witnesses who saw bodies say the actual number is higher.
Junta forces have launched attacks against the ethnically Kokang group in the Mongko and Pang Hseng regions of Muse, near the Chinese border. The MNDAA has said it wanted to resolve problems with dialogue but was forced to retaliate.
“The military is facing a much bigger loss right now,” a resident living near the area of the conflict told Myanmar Now. “The MNDAA keeps getting the upper hand, leading to the military losing a lot of their troops.”
At least four junta troops died in a clash on August 26, while at least five died on August 28 and another 20 were injured, the MNDAA has said. Then on Monday the group killed at least 15 soldiers and injured six during a battle in Pang Hseng, an unnamed MNDAA spokesperson told local media.
“The MNDAA still has zero casualties,” he told the Kachin News Group on Monday. “The military regime is now sending reinforcements to prepare for an attack on the MNDAA units stationed in Mongko.”
The rebel group has released pictures of some of the soldiers it has killed and their confiscated weapons and ammunition.
The MNDAA said it ambushed soldiers who were heading towards Mongko on a road between Pang Hseng and the region of Nant Hu. Many junta soldiers retreated and left their weapons and dead comrades behind, the group added.
The resident said the MNDAA’s count of how many troops had died is an underestimate: “Many locals said that they found more bodies in the area. There are some people who found 17 more bodies near Nant Hu, so we are pretty sure the military lost many more people.”
Hundreds of people have been displaced by the fighting. The military council has also been fighting with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in Mongko recently.
