KIA captures trade hub on China-Myanmar border

Kachin Independence Army (KIA) fighters took full control of the border town of Lwegel (Lweje or Loi Je) in Kachin State’s Momauk Township on Monday, according to the Kachin armed group’s spokesperson. Footage posted on social media showed that a KIA flag was already hoisted over the China-Myanmar border by April 5. However, KIA spokesperson Col. Naw Bu told Myanmar Now on Tuesday that the group had only taken full control after pushing the army’s Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 142 out of the town, located on Kachin State’s border with China’s Yunnan Province, the previous day. “Junta troops from Light Infantry Battalion 142 abandoned their base yesterday. We don’t know where they are heading but we are pursuing them. The town is under the full control of the KIA,” Col. Naw Bu said. He added that between March 27 and April 1, the KIA was also able to capture ten army bases—including the two located in the villages of Yaw Yon and Sein Long—on the road between Momauk and Lwegel, a crucial route for transporting goods to the border. A source connected to the KIA said that the LIB 142 troops had surrendered to the KIA before departing for China on Monday evening. “Junta troops and their families crossed into China when the border gate opened at around 10pm last night. They were not allowed to take weapons or money with them over the border. The KIA seized their weapons and cash,” the source said. Lwegel, located less than 60 miles east of Bhamo, Kachin State and less than 100 miles south of Laiza—the site of the KIA’s headquarters—is one of the five major crossings used for border trade between Myanmar and China. According to Col. Naw Bu, the KIA has temporarily suspended trade in Lwegel but it will resume soon. Map showing location of Lwegel (Myanmar Now) “Trade has currently halted and though we haven’t yet begun operations, we will resume trading activity in coming weeks,” Col. Naw Bu of KIA said. According to the junta-controlled ministry of commerce, the volume of imports and exports through Lwegel border gate totaled more than US $120 million between April 2023 and February 2024. The KIA has overrun at least sixty junta bases and camps in the Kachin State townships of Waingmaw, Momauk, Hpakant, Putao and Sumprabum since March 7. Fighting is ongoing in Hpakant Township, with the KIA continuing to gain ground. “We’ve captured all junta bases and camps along Lwegel-Bhamo highway, near Laiza and Mai Ja Yang,” Col. Naw Bu of KIA said. “But several junta bases are still operating, so tensions are still high. We will continue our fight against them.”

KIA captures trade hub on China-Myanmar border

The Kachin armed group has suspended border trade in the town of Lwegel, one of five major hubs of the China-Myanmar border trade, but will allow it to resume in the coming weeks, a KIA spokesperson said

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