Fighting intensifies as Myanmar junta pushes into former DKBA territory near Myawaddy

Multiple clashes have been reported south of the Karen State border town of Myawaddy over the past month as Myanmar’s military advances into territory formerly controlled by its ceasefire partner, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), according to resistance sources. The junta offensive is being carried out by a column formed in the town of Lay Kay Kaw, about three miles south of Myawaddy, on July 6. The force has since moved south toward Minletpan, a village that was captured by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and allied resistance groups late last year. “They didn’t come straight; they looped around to the south to cut through. They crossed over the mountains and entered through the back door,” a source from the Karen National Union (KNU), the KNLA's political wing, told Myanmar Now. The source alleged the military column was guided by fighters from the DKBA and a splinter group of the Karen State Border Guard Force (BGF) under the command of Myanmar’s military. Last week, state-controlled media reported that regime forces had seized a cyber scam compound that authorities said was under the protection of the KNLA and allied resistance forces. The state-run Myanmar Alin newspaper said the July 25 raid resulted in the arrest of 777 people, including 631 Chinese nationals, 143 Myanmar citizens, and three Thai women. It also reported that security forces seized a Starlink satellite internet device during the operation. The newspaper said junta troops fought KNLA and allied forces at least five times before reaching the compound and captured seven rifles and a pistol during the clashes. A source close to the KNU disputed the regime’s account, saying the compound was located in territory still controlled by the DKBA. The source added that when KNLA-led forces captured Minletpan in November of last year, they also uncovered a large scam compound housing thousands of foreign nationals. Myanmar’s military junta has repeatedly accused the KNLA and its allies of protecting transnational criminal organisations. Resistance groups reject those allegations, pointing instead to evidence linking pro-junta militias, including the DKBA and the Karen BGF, to online scam operations. On July 27, Thailand’s Department of Special Investigation issued an arrest warrant for Saw Mote Thon, commander of the Karen BGF’s Military Region 4—the breakaway faction reportedly assisting the current junta offensive—on human trafficking charges connected to scam centres. A source close to the KNU alleged that Myanmar’s military remains the primary enabler of criminal syndicates operating in the country despite publicly claiming to crack down on them. “The root of the problem is the military,” the source said. “They are deeply involved in deriving benefits and have no intention of eradicating this issue anywhere. Whenever they face external pressure, they just put on a show here and there.” The source also alleged that military operations against the scam hubs of KK Park and Shwe Kokko last year were intended to destroy evidence of official involvement rather than dismantle the operations. Myanmar Now sought comment from Col. Myo Aung of the regime’s True News Information Team about the junta’s claims regarding resistance involvement in scam operations, but did not receive a response. DKBA forces are reportedly still deployed near Minletpan, although resistance sources said there have been no recent clashes between the group and the KNLA. In November, the United States imposed sanctions on four DKBA leaders over alleged links to online scam operations. On July 9, senior DKBA officials met with Gen. Yar Pyae, chairman of the junta’s National Solidarity and Peacemaking Negotiation Committee, in Naypyitaw. According to a regime statement, the talks focused on cooperation to eliminate online scam operations in DKBA-controlled areas and coordinate military activities. Residents and sources across the border in Thailand have reporting hearing the sound of heavy fighting in Myawaddy Township, with artillery rounds occasionally landing on the Thai side of the frontier. Soe Paing, headman of a Thai border village east of Minletpan, told Myanmar Now that a shell struck a Buddhist monastery on the Myanmar side of the border on July 28, injuring three civilians, including a monk. A resistance group fighting alongside the KNLA also claimed that six Myanmar soldiers surrendered during recent fighting. The claim could not be independently verified.

Fighting intensifies as Myanmar junta pushes into former DKBA territory near Myawaddy

The push into southern Myawaddy Township comes as the regime renews claims of a crackdown on scam centres

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