Fresh fighting broke out in Sagaing Region’s Kalay Township on Wednesday, resulting in casualties on all sides and the further displacement of local civilians, sources in the area reported.
One clash took place near the village of Mhan Taw, where the CDF-KKG, a chapter of the Chinland Defence Force based in Kalay Township, Kabaw Valley and Gangaw Township, attacked a column of around 100 junta soldiers with explosives on Wednesday morning.
In the ensuing hour-long battle, three people, believed to be members of the military-backed Pyu Saw Htee militia, were killed, according to the CDF-KKG.
One CDF-KKG member was also injured, the group said.
In a statement, the Kalay People’s Defence Force (PDF) said it also carried out a series of attacks on Wednesday, injuring at least 30 junta troops.
One attack was directed at troops moving south from the town of Kalay, who were hit by 28 consecutive explosions near the village of Nat Myaung. An unspecified number of soldiers were injured in that attack, according to the Kalay PDF statement.
Another one-hour battle took place near the village of Tharyarkone, resulting in the death of two Kalay PDF fighters, the group said.
The number of regime casualties in that clash could not be confirmed at the time of reporting.
The latest fighting has put renewed pressure on Natchaung, a village on the Kalay-Gangaw road that has borne the brunt of hostilities in the area in recent months.
Most of Natchaung’s nearly 2,000 households were forced to flee after the village came under attack by regime forces from both land and air late last year.
Dozens of homes were destroyed by occupying troops, and residents who returned after the soldiers left last month found the bodies of at least 20 slain villagers.
Many of those who returned have fled again in the wake of the latest fighting, according to local sources.
“About 60% of the people from here are still in hiding. Those who did come back only did so because the local defence forces said it was safe. But now we don’t know when we’ll have to run again,” said a Natchaung resident who spoke to Myanmar Now earlier this week.
According to the Kalay PDF, around 100 villages in Kalay Township are currently under the direct control of military forces.
Meanwhile, the CDF-KKG recently warned residents of the area to stay away from the Kalay-Gangaw road for the next week, as new fighting could break out at any time.
