MNDAA releases more than 200 prisoners of war in Lashio

The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), has released more than 200 prisoners of war in Lashio, northern Shan State, amid ongoing tensions with junta troops, residents said. On Saturday morning, the group assembled the prisoners of war at the old toll gate in Kachinkone village along the Lashio–Hsenwi road before handing them back to junta forces, Lashio residents said. "They were first gathered inside the Asia World gate and then transferred from the AT Bridge area,” a Lashio resident told Myanmar Now of the release. “We don't know where they were brought from. The MNDA then sent back the junta soldiers.” The junta took the prisoners of war released by the MNDAA to the Northeastern Command agricultural farm near Lashio Airport, said another resident. Among those released were junta police members of various ranks. During the second phase of Operation 1027 in July 2024, MNDAA forces launched an assault on Lashio and captured the city in early August. In the takeover, they detained more than 4,000 junta soldiers and family members, including former Regional Commander Maj. Gen. Soe Tint, Brig. Gen. Thant Htin Soe, and Brig. Gen. Myo Min Htwe of Military Operation Command 1 in Kyaukme, Shan State. Of those detained, more than 3,000 family members of prisoners of war were released last year, while over 1,000 junta troops remain in custody. The prisoners are being held in Kunlong and Laukkai, and the MNDAA has frequently released elderly detainees and those in poor health. Although the 12 wards of Lashio city were transferred back to the junta due to Chinese pressure in late April. The MNDAA still controls more than 70 villages in Lashio Township, extending into Hsenwi District, and continues to administer them. The ethnic armed organisation controls up to the border between Mongyai town and Hsipaw town, 40 miles from Lashio.On November 15, the Mongyai-Lashio road section was reopened, but the Hsipaw-Lashio road section remains closed, according to northern Shan locals. Both sides have reinforced troops along these road sections, and inspections are tighter than ever. While the release marks a rare gesture, the MNDAA’s continued control of villages around Lashio and detention of more than 1,000 junta troops signals that the conflict in the area will continue. Locals say the tightened inspections and heavy troop presence show that neither side is ready to fully step back. "They're keeping the young ones, those with high ranks, and professionals,” a source close to the prisoners said, describing the junta detainees. “For elderly people and those in poor health, they release them intermittently.” Family members of junta personnel are transferred back to the military by the Kokang army (MNDAA) in October 2024, following mass detentions during the group’s operations in northern Shan State. (Photo: The Kokang)

MNDAA releases more than 200 prisoners of war in Lashio

The release follows the MNDAA’s 2024 takeover of Lashio, when over 4,000 junta soldiers and their families were detained

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