Myanmar junta intensifies effort to retake key roads near Hpakant

A column of more than 600 junta troops has been advancing on the Kachin State town of Hpakant since late last month, as Myanmar’s military attempts to regain control of roads around the major jade-mining centre, according to local sources. The column has been marching towards Hpakant since it left the town of Kamaing, some 35 miles to the east, on April 23, the sources said. Since then, it has engaged in heavy fighting with the combined forces of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Kachin People’s Defence Force (PDF), which currently control the main roads connecting Hpakant to other towns in the area. “They’re advancing in split columns, coming along the main road and also using forest paths. Right now, there are intense clashes near Kat Hmaw,” said a man with ties to the KIA, referring to a village about 22 miles east of Hpakant on the Hpakant-Kamaing road. To facilitate the advance of the column, the military has reportedly been deploying heavy artillery, drones, and air support, forcing the allied resistance forces to gradually withdraw from their positions. Sources reported airstrikes in the area around Nam Ya, a village near Kat Hmaw, on Sunday. Residents of both villages, as well as others in the area, have fled their homes since the fighting began. “Everyone is fleeing to Hpakant now, ever since the army column arrived. Most have already reached Hpakant, numbering in the thousands,” said the local man. While junta troops remain stationed near Hpakant, including at a police station and at camps close to the entrance to the town and on nearby tactical hills, they have been unable to launch attacks because the surrounding area is controlled by the KIA-led forces. The KIA and Kachin PDF have captured a number of camps and villages around the town, and control the roads between Hpakant and Kamaing to the east, Indawgyi to the south, and Sezin to the southwest. Fighting has also been reported in recent days on the Hpakant-Indawgyi road, where junta troops are stationed near the village of Longton, according to sources in the area. According to KIA spokesperson Col Naw Bu, the regime is attempting to regain control of Hpakant so that it can resume collecting jade taxes that are now being paid by miners to the KIA. “Generally speaking, there is a major offensive in the Hpakant area. We believe they are attacking like this to cut off the KIA’s revenue,” he said. Meanwhile, fighting continues to intensify near the city of Bhamo in southern Kachin State, which resistance forces have been trying to capture since late last year. On Saturday, the junta used three helicopters to transport around 60 to 70 reinforcements to the city, according to Naw Bu. “There have been battles since this morning. With the continuous aerial bombardments, the military situation continues to be intense,” he said, speaking to Myanmar Now on Sunday The junta still holds seven positions in Bhamo, including the Military Operations Command 21 headquarters and the Infantry Battalion 47 base, which have been the main targets of recent resistance attacks. Since March of last year, the KIA and its allies have captured more than a dozen towns in Kachin State, including Dawthponeyan, Injangyang, Chipwe, Hpi Maw, Mansi, Momauk, Myo Hla, Pangwa (Pang War), Sadung, Sinbo, Sumprabum, Tsawlaw, and the border trade towns of Kan Paik Ti and Lwegel (Lweje or Loi Je), as well as the town of Mabein in northern Shan State.

Myanmar junta intensifies effort to retake key roads near Hpakant

The regime is hoping to regain control of the area so that it can resume collecting taxes from jade miners, according to the KIA

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