Myanmar junta offensive leaves one resistance fighter dead near Shan-Karenni border

At least one Karenni fighter was killed on Wednesday as regime forces continued their push into resistance-held territory in southern Shan State’s Pekhon Township, near the Karenni (Kayah) State border. The incident occurred near Moebye, a large village located about halfway between the town of Pekhon and the Karenni State capital Loikaw, which are both currently under junta control. “Fighting broke out last night. We lost one of our comrades, and another was injured,” a representative of a local resistance rescue team told Myanmar Now on Thursday. The same team posted a video on Facebook on Wednesday showing an injured resistance fighter receiving emergency treatment. The group also makes an urgent plea for medical supplies and fuel in the video. There were also reports on Wednesday of a regime airstrike on a village about three miles west of Moebye. “There were no casualties, as the bomb landed just outside of the village,” said Banya Khung Aung, director of the Karenni Human Rights Group, which reported the attack. The junta’s last remaining position in the Shan-Karenni border area is the Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 422 base located just south of Moebye. Several army battalions have arrived at the base since last month, but have so far been unable to advance on the village. “The junta soldiers haven’t reached Moebye yet. They are still inside the LIB 422 base,” said a member of a local resistance group, speaking on condition of anonymity. As part of its offensive, the regime has conducted frequent heavy artillery and drone assaults, as well as airstrikes, targeting resistance forces whose ambushes have hindered the advance of the junta ground troops. On Sunday, junta bombardments injured at least four civilians in eastern Pekhon Township, according to local rights groups. Last week, on January 15, an aerial attack on a camp for internally displaced persons in Karenni State’s Demoso Township left at least three people dead and four others injured. Two days earlier, junta airstrikes targeted two villages in western Pekhon Township. No civilian casualties were reported. On January 9, heavy artillery fire by junta forces resulted in the death of two children in Aing Sant, a village in Loikaw Township near the border with Shan State. Two others, including a five-month-old infant, were injured. Junta troops based in Loikaw, Demoso, and Pekhon townships are responsible for the attacks, local sources said.

Myanmar junta offensive leaves one resistance fighter dead near Shan-Karenni border

Another airstrike was also reported on Wednesday, as the military continues its push to retake resistance-held territory in southern Shan State

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