Casualties mount near Myanmar-India border as resistance, pro-regime forces deploy drones

Pro-junta and resistance forces reported losses this week as both sides deployed drones in clashes over junta positions on the border between Sagaing Region’s Tamu Township and the Indian state of Manipur. A frontline resistance fighter said junta forces were stationed in Kyun Pin Thar and Min Thar villages some 17 miles northeast of Tamu and less than two miles east of the international border. The allied forces of the resistance included members of three battalions of the People’s Defence Forces (PDF) based in Tamu District, commanded by the defence ministry of the publicly mandated National Unity Government (NUG), along with other anti-junta groups. The junta’s side included fighters of the Shanni Nationalities Army (SNA), Naga ethnic armed groups, and ethnically Meitei (or Kathe) armed groups based in India. According to local PDF fighters, hundreds of Meitei separatists have been fighting alongside the Myanmar junta’s forces in Tamu Township since the 2021 military coup. The frontline resistance member told Myanmar Now that there were more than 500 personnel defending the pro-junta forces’ camps, and their numbers were one of the reasons resistance forces suffered unexpectedly high casualties in their attacks. "They have a strongly established position there,” he said, referring to Kyun Pin Thar. “Our comrades also suffered significant losses from fighting on the previous day. The upper area is all mountains; even though there are villages, it's rocky terrain. Fighting conditions have been difficult.” The junta air force bombed Kyun Pin Thar and Min Thar on Tuesday, but airstrikes had ceased by Thursday. The resistance fighter added that junta forces stationed in the village of Pan Thar some seven miles north of Tamu had not only been shelling surrounding villages and calling in airstrikes in recent days, but had also begun to deploy drones. "The other day they attacked our outpost with kamikaze drones. The next day they used fixed wing drones to strike Nan Mun Tar and Khum Mun Nun villages, but there were no casualties or deaths,” he said, distinguishing the fixed wing drones that can be in repeated attacks from those that detonate on first use. The resistance alliance struck Pan Thar with their own unmanned drones on Thursday morning, causing casualties among the pro-junta forces, the resistance fighter added. That evening, posts on pro-junta Telegram channels claimed the pro-regime fighters had found seven PDF members’ bodies as well as taking weapons, ammunition, and equipment during raids in Kyun Pin Thar. Weapons and ammunition reportedly seized by junta troops, from photos posted on pro-junta Telegram channels Neither the number of casualties nor the claims made by either side in the clashes have been verified independently. Thousands of residents have fled Tamu since the second week of January amid rumours that the town would soon fall under resistance forces’ control. Fighting is ongoing as of Friday morning, with the resistance allies reportedly intensifying their attacks on Tamu. In the last week of October last year, fighting broke out as the Myanmar military and allied fighting forces advanced into PDF-controlled territory from two directions. In the ensuing clashes, the Meitei auxiliary forces reportedly incurred three combat deaths and resistance fighters took one of their members prisoner. Tamu is the only township remaining under junta control in Tamu District after resistance forces commanded by the NUG captured the towns of Khampat and Myothit. Capturing Tamu would bring the whole district under their control. After the NUG announced plans to establish a union-level government office in Sagaing Region, the junta intensified aerial attacks on the resistance-controlled town of Khampat, causing civilian casualties. Resistance forces have succeeded in keeping control over most of Sagaing Region’s territory, especially in rural areas. The resistance controls the Sagaing Region towns of Shwe Pyi Aye, Homalin Township and Pinlebu as well as Khampat and Myothit.

Casualties mount near Myanmar-India border as resistance, pro-regime forces deploy drones

Armed pro-junta groups and various resistance units have all increased their reliance on drone warfare on Sagaing Region’s border with India

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