KIA seizes army, militia bases in Waingmaw Township

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) took control of two small camps held by junta troops and junta-trained militias in eastern Waingmaw Township, Kachin State on Wednesday, local sources said. The camps captured by the KIA are near the village of Lu Man, commonly called La Myan by local people, roughly five miles east of Waingmaw. KIA fighters seized the two security outposts on the west side of Lu Man by 8am on Wednesday, less than two hours after fighting had begun, according to a Waingmaw Township resident. The bases were manned by a combination of soldiers and members of the so-called “people’s militias” armed and trained by the junta. “It’s true they seized two small security outposts,” the township resident said on Wednesday. “Things are calm now, but there was intense artillery fire earlier in the morning.” The number of men stationed at the two base camps has not been confirmed. Local people said that artillery at the army’s Northern Regional Military Command (RMC) at Myitkyina fired on the battlefield during the clash, providing support to the troops at the bases. Myitkyina, the Kachin State capital, is located some 30 miles west of Lu Man, across the Ayeyarwady River. Fighting near Lu Man village has been intensifying since Monday, according to the KIA’s spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu. “The fighting has continued since 6am, though it has eased a bit now,” Col. Naw Bu said on Wednesday evening. “The situation is still unstable, with junta troops assaulting frontline and security outposts while we fight to retake them.” A joint force comprising the Myanmar army’s Waingmaw-based Infantry Battalion 58, units from the junta’s Northern RMC, and militias has been carrying out counterattacks on KIA-controlled areas in eastern Waingmaw Township for more than two months. Waingmaw Township residents said the clashes have displaced some 1,000 civilians from their homes in Lu Man and surrounding areas. The KIA and allied forces launched an offensive against the Myanmar military in March 2024, subsequently capturing 15 towns throughout Kachin State and adjacent parts of northern Shan State. Since initiating a counteroffensive throughout Myanmar earlier this year with fresh batches of conscripted troops, the military has so far only managed to recapture a fraction of the territory lost to the KIA.

KIA seizes army, militia bases in Waingmaw Township

Despite an ongoing, countrywide junta counteroffensive, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and its allies have so far held most of the territory captured from the military since 2024

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