KIA retakes police station amid fierce clashes in southern Kachin State

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and its allies regained control of a police station in the southern Kachin State town of Mansi on Monday as fighting in the area continues. The KIA-led forces have been engaging in fierce battles with Myanmar’s military for over a week in Mansi and Momauk townships, both part of the state’s southernmost Bhamo District. The latest clashes began on May 7, when the anti-regime groups launched coordinated attacks in both townships, ultimately retaking the police station in Mansi and one in the village of Sin Khan, according to KIA information officer Col. Naw Bu. “We have reclaimed control of the Mansi police station but the battles are still ongoing and the tension is still rising in Momauk and Mansi,” he told Myanmar Now on Tuesday. The KIA had previously captured the police station in Mansi, but was forced to retreat due to junta airstrikes. When the group retook the police station on Monday afternoon, it also drove regime troops out of the town, he added. The allied forces are currently carrying out attacks on the Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 437 base near Momauk and the heavily fortified LIB 601 and LIB 319 bases near Mansi, according to Col. Naw Bu. “Our troops on the frontlines say they have lost count of the number of airstrikes that the military has carried out,” he said. While the regime has not released any statements about the fighting in the area, it recently said that it had taken a local religious leader into custody to “discuss peace.” A resident of Mansi who fled to the city of Bhamo a few days ago to escape the fighting said that clashes had broken out around the town, and that a number of houses had been consumed by fire. “There were houses burning down, and it’s the same in Momauk,” he said, adding that an entire ward in Mansi had been destroyed. A Christian minister who has been assisting displaced civilians sheltering in Bhamo said that many others were still trying to reach the city. However, due to the fighting and junta blockades, many had been forced to travel through the jungle, he said. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he also told Myanmar Now that some civilians trapped in Mansi and Momauk had been killed by airstrikes, while others were facing hunger. “Some who arrived here from Momauk yesterday had not eaten in five days. One woman fainted as soon as she got here. And others hiding in their houses or in trenches have died in the airstrikes,” he said, adding that exact casualty figures were not available due to the ongoing clashes. Meanwhile, the KIA has also been engaged in major battles with the Myanmar military in the northern part of the state. On Saturday, it intercepted a junta convoy heading from Putao to the town of Sumprabum, which the KIA and its allies captured on May 5. Fighting has also been reported in neighbouring Tanai Township, where the allied anti-junta forces have been trying to capture an army base for the past several days. It has also been reported that Lt.-Gen. Khaung Lun, the KIA’s commander-in-chief, died of liver disease on Tuesday. In addition to leading the Kachin armed group, he was also a regional commander under the publicly mandated National Unity Government, which sent a letter of condolence today.

KIA retakes police station amid fierce clashes in southern Kachin State

As many residents of Mansi and Momauk flee to Bhamo to escape the fighting, others trapped in the towns are facing hunger and junta airstrikes

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