Clashes reported across Tanintharyi Region, in Myanmar’s far south

Fighting occurred in at least five locations in southern Myanmar’s Tanintharyi Region last week, including at a police station captured by resistance forces near the major port city of Dawei, according to sources. Clashes have been reported around the Dawei Special Economic Zone, along Pyidaungsu (Union) Highway No. 8, and on the road from the town of Tanintharyi to Mawdaung, on the Thai-Myanmar border, according to Fe5 Tanintharyi, a local research group. According to the group’s editor, the main clashes have taken place northwest of Dawei, where anti-regime forces captured a police station in the town of Maungmagan on October 26, and along the Tanintharyi-Mawdaung road. “They’re trying to outmanoeuvre each other. Fighting is intense all along that road,” he said, noting that the junta has deployed around 500 troops in both areas for offensive operations. While Tanintharyi and Mawdaung are both under regime control, the road between them is largely controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU) and allied forces. The regime carried out multiple airstrikes near Theinkhun, a village on the Tanintharyi-Mawdaung road, between October 26 and 29, the KNU Brigade 4’s Myeik-Dawei District Information Department said in a statement released last week. The aerial attacks destroyed several houses and forced civilians to flee, the statement added. Meanwhile, military forces under the command of the National Unity Government (NUG) issued a statement on October 27 warning locals to avoid the Myeik-Tanintharyi-Bokepyin section of Pyidaungsu Highway No. 8 amid an expected intensification of military operations in the area. A source close to the NUG-led forces reported heavy fighting last week near the villages of Hparni and Zawea, both in Tanintharyi Township. Min Lwin Oo, an official with the Dawei Democracy Movement Strike Committee, said that despite the recent increase in military activity in Tanintharyi Region, it is unlikely that there will be any attempt by regime opponents to seize major towns. “The resistance forces are not yet ready to conduct town-capture battles. Since the KNU mainly focuses on guerrilla warfare, I think town-capture battles are still quite far off,” he said. He also noted that the ongoing conflict has had a damaging effect on the local economy. “Transportation costs have increased significantly. There are more checkpoints, so there are more gate fees to pay, which is driving up commodity prices,” he said. On October 30, the NUG’s Special Region Military Command announced that its forces had seized many weapons from the captured police station in Maungmagan, located about eight miles northwest of Dawei. According to the regime’s election schedule, Dawei, Myeik, Bokepyin, and Kawthaung will be included in the first phase of the election on December 28, while Yebyu, Kyunsu, and Tanintharyi townships will take part in the second phase on January 11. There are a number of armed groups active in Tanintharyi Region, including the KNU’s Brigade 4, NUG-led forces, ethnic Mon armed groups, the Kawthoolei Army, and local resistance forces.

Clashes reported across Tanintharyi Region, in Myanmar’s far south

Resistance forces capture a police station near the city of Dawei as fighting intensifies on multiple fronts in the region

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