Clashes displace civilians in Kachin State as anti-junta offensive proceeds

Fighting in Kachin State’s Mansi and Momauk townships this week forced hundreds of civilians to flee to Bhamo, the nearest large city, according to local sources. The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) launched an attack at on junta base camps at around 5am on Tuesday in Hsin Hkan village—on the south bank of the Ayeyarwaddy River some 25 miles downriver from Bhamo—and in Mansi Township some 12 miles south of Bhamo. Within hours of the battles breaking out, the KIA and its allies took over the village of Hsin Hkan and captured Mansi’s police station. Fighting continued through most of the day, with the military deploying long-range artillery and carrying out airstrikes targeting the KIA. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) arriving in Bhamo have taken shelter in churches and Buddhist monasteries, according to a Christian community leader assisting the displaced. At least 10 local churches are currently housing IDPs, the Christian leader said, while more people displaced by the fighting are staying in relatives’ homes in the city. Displaced people in Bhamo Township have also fled to KIA-controlled villages such as Myo Thit, Momauk Township, he added. IDPs sheltering in the St. Joseph IDP Camp in Kachin State’s Waingmaw Township in March 2020, shortly after a ceasefire between the Myanmar military and KIA broke down that year (Photo: Myanmar Now) “The churches are full of IDPs,” he said. “Many of them are also sheltering in monasteries. However, some people have fled to other villages so it’s difficult to determine the exact number.” "Some IDPs brought rice and other food with them,” he added. “We provided food to those who arrived without.” Mansi’s population was about 8,000 and Momauk’s was just under 11,000 according to Myanmar’s nationwide census of 2014, although residents estimate that the real populations of both towns were larger. Since late April, fighting has driven many of Momauk’s inhabitants to flee to Bhamo, and as many as half the residents of Mansi have fled to villages such as Mong Hkawng and Kawng Jar in Mansi Township as well as Bhamo. A woman in her 40s who recently fled from Mansi to Bhamo said she was only able to bring a few articles of clothing because her family had to leave home urgently. “I didn’t think there would be any fighting, and I was barely able to bring anything. I had to leave almost everything behind,” she said. A 59-year-old woman was killed on Tuesday and other civilians were injured when the army’s Infantry Battalion 601 fired on the outskirts of town using heavy artillery, local news outlet The 74 Media reported. A man volunteering as a relief worker in Bhamo expressed concern that without more donations, there could be a shortage of food and other necessities for the displaced people. “I don't know how long the fighting will last. Some people have been here for more than a week. We can't even count the number of new people arriving, so it's not easy," he said. The junta has not released any news about the military situation around Momauk, Mansi, and Bhamo. Some residents of Bhamo said that they heard heavy artillery fire from junta bases in Bhamo between Tuesday night and around 1pm on Wednesday afternoon. They speculated that the junta forces were firing on Mansi. According to Col. Naw Bu, a spokesperson for the KIA, while it is likely that fighting has continued since Tuesday, details about conditions in these areas are difficult to confirm. “I have heard that the fighting has continued. I also heard the news that the military council has conducted airstrikes. However, we are not hearing anything about the situation on the ground now," Col. Naw Bu said. However, Col. Naw Bu received information that junta forces destroyed a bridge elsewhere in the state on Wednesday. After KIA fighters captured more than 10 junta army in Waingmaw Township, the KIA spokesperson said, army troops detonated explosives on Wednesday on a nearby bridge, located on a segment of the Bhamo-Myitkyina road between Waingmaw Township’s Ka Tsu and Da Bat Yang villages. Troops stationed at a junta base camp in Ka Tsu village were responsible for destroying the bridge, according to Col. Naw Bu, who noted that they may have been trying to protect the Ka Tsu camp and the Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 321 base in Shwe Nyaung Pin village from attack. Both are frontline junta positions. “I think they destroyed it because they were worried about the security of the Ka Tsu base,” Col. Naw Bu said. “At the moment, just destroying the bridge cannot stop our advance. We can reach our target via many other routes, so just destroying one bridge cannot disrupt the KIA’s operations,” he added. Since the launch of the KIA offensive in Kachin State on March 7 of this year, intense fighting has broken out in Bhamo, Hpakant, Lwegel, Momauk, Mansi, Myitkyina, Sumprabum, and Waingmaw townships. According to recent data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), more than 18,000 people have fled their homes in 10 Kachin State townships since March. Since the military coup in 2021, UNOCHA estimates that 2.6 million people have been forced out of their homes nationwide. Due to suppression of information and problems of access under the military regime, the true number may be higher.

Clashes displace civilians in Kachin State as anti-junta offensive proceeds

As escalating battles displaced inhabitants of Momauk and Mansi townships, army troops destroyed a bridge on the Myitkyina-Bhamo road in an apparent bid to protect one of their bases

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