Junta retakes Falam after six-month offensive in Chin State

Junta forces recaptured Falam, the second capital of Chin State, on April 25 after a six-month offensive backed by airstrikes and ground troops — a victory that could reshape the war across northern Myanmar. Chin resistance fighters had held Falam since April 2025. The junta launched its counteroffensive last October, pushing hundreds of troops in two columns from Kalay Township in neighboring Sagaing Region, one advancing along the Kalay-Taingen-Tedim road, the other along the Kalay-Gangaw road. The junta also airlifted about 500 reinforcements to Infantry Battalion 269 in Tedim, according to PDF Zoland, a member of the Chin Brotherhood resistance coalition. Those forces linked up with the Kalay column at Taingen and pressed into Falam, forcing resistance fighters to abandon the city. "The junta has the advantage in air power. They can use their firepower excessively, more than is necessary,” former junta captain Zin Yaw, who defected after the 2021 and joined the Civil Disobedience Movement, told Myanmar Now. “It is not a situation where they are running out of ammunition. They waited to launch the offensive only after securing the Kalay-Taingen-Falam LOC (logistics) route. Then, because they used their firepower, I assess that the Chin resistance forces had to give it up because they could not match that firepower.”Falam is home to Surbung Airport, the first airport in Chin State, and sits at the junction connecting the state's north and south. It links to Magway Region through Hakha and Tedim and lies near Rikhawdar, a major trading hub on the Indian border. A coalition of the Chin Brotherhood and the Chinland Council defended the city for more than six months before retreating. "They use about three planes at once,” an official with CDF Siyin, one of the resistance groups, told Myanmar Now. “They didn't use them like that before. The air combat is relentless. The junta troops advanced at night, and early morning, around 4 or 5 am. As soon as day broke, the planes would start circling.”The Institute of Chin Affairs reported in March that at least 42 resistance fighters had been killed and more than 100 wounded in the Falam fighting, most by airstrikes and drones. With Falam under junta control, pressure is mounting on resistance-held townships across northern Chin State. Zin Yaw said the military will likely push next toward Rikhawdar, Thantlang and Tonzang. "Since they have gained a foothold in Falam, we see that they are not giving any rest; they are continuing to expand and profit from their gains,” Zin Yaw said. “They will likely control the Falam-Hakha road section first.” Rikhawdar, which borders India's Mizoram State, was captured by the Chinland Council in late 2023 and remains under resistance administration. "The junta must want to control the border; that is strategic. With Taingen, Rikhawdar and Falam, they have managed to control about two-thirds of northern Chin State," the CDF Siyin official said. The Chin Brotherhood holds Matupi, Mindat and Kanpetlet in the south, while the allied Arakan Army controls Paletwa. In the north, the junta has footholds in Hakha and Tedim, the Chinland Council holds Tonzang, and Thantlang is split between the two sides after its population fled. Falam pictured in January 2021, weeks before the military coup that triggered Myanmar's civil war. The city sits at a strategic junction linking northern and southern Chin State and lies along key routes to Magway Region and the Indian border. (Photo: Junta Information Ministry) Resistance leaders concede weaknesses in their coordination, and tensions flared between the Chin Brotherhood and Chinland Council over territory last year. The Falam offensive comes as the junta chief, now serving as Myanmar's president, has invited ethnic armed organisations to negotiate before July 31 — even as the military escalates operations in Sagaing, Magway, Rakhine and Chin states. Martial law remains in force across 60 townships in nine states and regions, including seven in Chin State."The resistance side must fix the weakness in formation strategy,” the CDF Siyin official said. “Second, we need to improve technology on how to resist the military council, which is upgrading to modern military technology and equipment. That is the main thing. As for the rest, no matter how many troops they have, we have nothing to worry about.”

Junta retakes Falam after six-month offensive in Chin State

Airstrikes and ground troops force Chin resistance coalition to abandon the state's second capital, which had been under their control since April 2025

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