Myanmar resistance forces capture police station in Sagaing’s Depayin Township

Anti-regime forces captured a police station in Sagaing Region’s Depayin Township over the weekend after two days of fierce fighting that left at least 11 junta troops dead, according to local residents and resistance sources. The battle for the police station in Saing Pyin, a town in Depayin Township about 40 miles north of the Sagaing capital Monywa, began on May 14, the Shwebo District Command of the People’s Defence Force (PDF) said. Weapons and ammunition were seized during the operation, the group said in a statement. The station commander, Police Second Lieutenant Win Zarni Aung, reportedly fled during the fighting. The Saing Pyin police station had served as a base for junta troops since the 2021 coup. Resistance forces say soldiers stationed there regularly looted and burned homes in nearby villages, while also gathering intelligence used for airstrikes on civilian targets, including schools and hospitals. “We recently received reliable reports that reinforcements were coming with drones and other equipment to carry out attacks on the local population, to instil fear in them. So we took the initiative and attacked them first,” a PDF official told Myanmar Now. Residents said the fighting was intense, with junta forces deploying attack helicopters and kamikaze drones in an effort to hold onto the station. The capture marks a significant victory for anti-junta forces, which have faced intense pressure from the military in recent months. Observers said the operation was particularly notable because of the station’s proximity to the military’s Northwestern Regional Military Command headquarters in Monywa. Resistance fighters later withdrew from the site after clearing the buildings and removing landmines, according to the PDF official. Saing Pyin and the town of Depayin are the only areas in Depayin Township still under regime control. Following the fall of the Saing Pyin police station, only Depayin remains fully controlled by junta forces. Local residents welcomed the development, saying the military presence had severely restricted travel and disrupted daily life. “When they were stationed here, we couldn’t travel freely,” said a resident of Saing Pyin. “In the rainy season, we had to take detours, and because the roads were bad, cargo trucks and cars got bogged down. Some people needlessly lost their lives while travelling for health emergencies. Now, we can travel on the good road.” Residents returning to the area were warned to avoid the police station because of remaining landmines and unexploded ordnance. The Shwebo District PDF also acknowledged entering civilian homes during the fighting to avoid airstrikes, and asked residents for their understanding. On the same day the station fell, a military convoy that included five armoured vehicles and a drone-jamming vehicle reportedly left the junta’s regional command headquarters in Monywa and headed toward the area. The convoy, which carried around 100 troops, was later seen in Budalin, southwest of Saing Pyin. Resistance forces briefly captured the town of Depayin in August 2024 but withdrew after the military launched a counteroffensive supported by air reinforcements. Depayin Township borders Ye-U, Khin-U, Shwebo, Budalin, Kani and Ayadaw townships and is widely regarded as a resistance stronghold, with anti-junta groups controlling most rural areas.

Myanmar resistance forces capture police station in Sagaing’s Depayin Township

The police station was used by the regime as a base of operations for troops carrying out attacks on civilian targets in the area

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