KNLA and allies destroy junta army base in Karen State

The Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA)and allied resistance forces claimed in a public statement to have captured a strategically significant junta camp south of Karen State's Hpapun Township on Wednesday. The camp, called the Taung Thone Lone base, is located between the towns of Hpapun and Kamarmaung. An alliance of anti-junta forces first started attacking the base on December 4, finally managing to capture it early Wednesday morning. Brigade 5 of the KNLA , one of Myanmar’s oldest and largest ethnic armed organisations, led the operation, with the People's Defense Force (PDF), Bamar People's Liberation Army (BPLA), and an accompanying drone unit from the Force For Federal Democracy’s (FFD) lending support.In a statement from the National Unity Government (NUG), Myanmar’s democratically elected civilian administration in exile, the junta sustained multiple casualties, while the anti-junta alliance only saw one of its fighters wounded in the operation. Tin Oo, commander of Military Division 2 under the NUG defence ministry's Southern Regional Command, told Myanmar Now that the junta camp was vital to capture as it was positioned between Hpapun Township and the village of Kataing, further to the south. “These camps control the routes, so they are strategically important,” Tin Oo said. Resistance forces captured a stockpile of the military’s weapons and equipment during the raid, which included various large and small mortars, machine guns, and a large supply of ammunition.Since late October, the KNLA claims to have been targeting junta camps in Hpapun Township in a series of assaults. A top priority has been to eliminate bases that have been providing artillery support for the junta, members of the KNLA said.Karen anti-junta forces have been attempting to liberate Hpapun Township since late March. Although KNLA forces have seized much of the township, they have not been able to take the junta's tactical base and two battalion bases south of the town. Karen anti-junta fighters seized weapons and ammunition from the army after the successful offensive (Photo - BPLA) On October 31, KNLA-led forces captured the strategically important camp of Hkawpoke to the northeast. The KNLA troops and their allies then continued their assaults on other junta camps further to the south. On November 3, resistance forces intercepted a group of junta troops retreating from the Hkawpoke camp, killing 14 of the soldiers and capturing 17 alive. Although anti-regime forces have managed to topple numerous junta camps in Hpapun Township, these operations have come at a high cost for the township’s infrastructure. Much of the area has been damaged by the fighting, and will likely undergo further destruction as the military still holds various positions throughout the township. According to the KNLA statement, there were at least 43 battles between their fighters and junta forces in November. The statement also claimed the military regime had sustained 88 fatalities, with another 13 wounded, and that their air force had dropped at least 16 bombs in November, with three falling in residential areas and resulting in at least one civilian being wounded. An anti-junta fighter at the Taung Thone Lone camp (Photo - BPLA)

KNLA and allies destroy junta army base in Karen State

The successful operation comes after a month of heavy fighting and a string of gains by anti-junta forces Hpapun Township

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