Fighting north of Mandalay leaves at least one civilian dead

A clash that broke out north of Mandalay early Thursday morning left at least one civilian dead and two others injured near the border between Madaya and Patheingyi townships, according to local sources. The fighting, between junta troops and the Mandalay Region People’s Defence Force (MDY-PDF), started at around 5am near Htan Pin Kone, a village about 18 miles north of Mandalay and six miles east of the town of Madaya. In response, regime forces stationed in Htee Taw Moe, a village several miles to the south, opened fire with heavy artillery, hitting a monastery in the nearby village of Mya Kan Thar. A man living near the monastery was killed by the shelling and a monk and a woman were injured, according to a resident of Patheingyi Township, where Mya Kan Thar is located. “I was told that a monk and a woman were taken to the hospital, but I haven’t heard anything about them dying. The man who was working on the farm next to the monastery has already died,” the local said. The regime also carried out airstrikes and shelling from a soccer field near the town of Madaya, he added. “I heard the deafening booms of the explosions. The planes attacked three times, and the artillery fire hasn’t stopped,” the local said late Thursday. Pauk Ko Taw, a nationalist monk and prominent backer of the regime, reported on social media that junta troops and members of the pro-regime Pyu Saw Htee militia suffered casualties during the fighting in Htan Pin Kone. “Members of our People’s Militia have been injured. We’ve received reports from the ground that one was shot in the thigh and struck in the face by shell fragments. The situation is still uncertain as the battle continues,” said the monk, formally known as U Ariya Wunsa. The MDY-PDF and allied forces have taken control of most of the eastern part of Madaya Township since launching an offensive there in late June. They have since seized 32 junta camps in the township, as well as a security outpost at the Alpha Cement Factory in neighbouring Patheingyi Township. In August, resistance forces also captured a gold mine in Patheingyi Township owned by Maung Ko, the former junta-appointed chief minister of Mandalay Region. Late last month, the regime launched a counteroffensive in the western part of Madaya Township, capturing a number of villages along the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwady River. Many of these villages have since been torched by occupying junta forces.The regime has also conducted drone attacks northeast of the town of Madaya, killing a number of civilians as it attempts to retake territory captured by resistance forces.

Fighting north of Mandalay leaves at least one civilian dead

Two others, including a monk, were injured by shelling after clashes erupted in eastern Madaya Township on Thursday

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