Resistance forces in northern Chin State’s Falam Township say they have been unable to take control of an army outpost near the Indian border despite carrying out multiple attacks over the past week.
A spokesperson for the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF) said that the assault on the outpost near Ti Bwar, a village about 35km northwest of the town of Falam, began last Tuesday.
“We managed to do quite a lot of damage with drones. Their base is pretty much destroyed now. However, we haven’t been able to use drones since they started using signal jammers on Saturday,” said Cung Ngai, the CNDF spokesperson.
“Only nine of the 34 junta troops that were at the base when we started are still alive, and some of them are badly injured, so it’s safe to say that our operation was 90% successful,” he added.
Myanmar Now has been unable to independently confirm these casualty figures.
According to Cung Ngai, the CNDF and its ally, the Mountain Eagle Defence Force, dropped more than 300 bombs—some weighing as much as 15kg—on the outpost, which is surrounded by trenches and three fences.
He explained that large, six-propeller drones were used for the heaviest payloads, while small- and medium-sized drones were deployed to deliver explosives that weighed up to 4kg.
“We let the smaller ones hover around the base as backup and attacked the main bunkers and residential buildings with the bigger ones that had six propellers,” he said.
“Drones made up 80% of our attack,” he added.
Four drones—one large and three small—were lost due to “technical errors,” according to the CNDF spokesperson.
He said that after the initial, three-hour attack last Tuesday, the military began to carry out airstrikes, which continued off and on until Sunday.
“We nearly managed to seize control of the base, but on Saturday, they hit us with two jets and five Mi-35 helicopters, which they also used to drop off reinforcements,” said Cung Ngai.
The following day, more helicopters arrived to drop off supplies, including weapons and ammunition. Around 200 bullets were seized after CNDF snipers shot two junta troops, he added.
Only four CNDF troops were injured throughout the entire operation, and no civilian casualties were reported because most local residents had fled the area, according to Cung Ngai.
Earlier this month, Myanmar’s military carried out airstrikes on a base operated by the Chin National Front, another armed group active near the border, without inflicting any damage or casualties.
In a leaked internal memo dated August 30, Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar’s top general and junta leader, warned about underestimating the threat posed by drones.
Three weeks later, the regime announced at a press conference that it had started installing signal jammers and anti-drone weapons at several military bases.
