More than 300 Myanmar army troops surrender to Kokang fighters in northern Shan State capital

Three senior officers were among 300 junta soldiers who surrendered to the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) in Lashio, northern Shan State on Sunday, the anti-junta armed group announced two days later via Youtube. The MNDAA, an armed group of mostly ethnically Kokang Chinese members, posted footage in Mandarin accompanied by a written statement in Burmese claiming soldiers under the command of coup chief Sen-Gen Min Aung Hlaing had surrendered to the Brotherhood Alliance in Lashio. The statement also claimed the MNDAA was treating the captives humanely in accordance with rules concerning prisoners of war. The Brotherhood Alliance—a tripartite grouping of ethnic armed groups including the MNDAA—has been carrying out a coordinated offensive against the Myanmar military since last year, dubbed “Operation 1027.” The alliance suspended the operation in accordance with a Beijing-brokered ceasefire in January 2024, but resumed fighting against regime forces late last month. The troops’ commanding officers—a lieutenant colonel and two majors—were among the soldiers who surrendered, according to the MNDAA. “At 10am on July 21, a lieutenant colonel together with two majors, five captains, and a total of 317 soldiers surrendered to the MNDAA, saying they wanted to join the Brotherhood Alliance in defeating the rest of Min Aung Hlaing’s coup army,” said the statement. In the posted video clip, an officer with MNDAA insignia on his sleeves shakes hands with a Myanmar army officer while the rest of the junta soldiers—some in army uniforms and some wearing black T-shirts—look on with weary expressions on their faces. The statement in Burmese claims that Mr. Qi Guangshun, a deputy director of the political department of the MNDAA, welcomed the surrendering prisoners with a guarantee to protect their lives. The statement also claims the group found and confiscated an arsenal of weapons from a nearby military training centre as they accepted the soldiers’ surrender. The junta troops reportedly sent the surrender petition on Sunday, coinciding with a decision by the Brotherhood Alliance, made under pressure from China, to extend a temporary ceasefire with the military until the end of July. Since fighting resumed in late June following the breakdown of the earlier ceasefire, the Brotherhood Alliance has been fighting against regime forces for control of Lashio, the administrative centre of northern Shan State and location of one of the army’s regional military command headquarters.

More than 300 Myanmar army troops surrender to Kokang fighters in northern Shan State capital

A video and written statement posted online by the anti-junta Kokang group MNDAA claimed the soldiers had expressed a desire to join their alliance in fighting the coup army under coup leader Min Aung Hlaing’s command

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