Regime forces torched nearly 100 buildings in the Chin State town of Thantlang during three days of fighting earlier this week, according to the Chinland Defence Force (CDF).
A CDF-Thantlang spokesperson said that the clashes, which left seven junta soldiers dead, began on Sunday, when the group ambushed troops stationed in the town at around 11am.
The military responded by firing heavy artillery, but failed to kill any CDF fighters in the two-hour-long battle that followed, the spokesperson said. However, one junta officer was shot dead by a sniper, he added.
According to the spokesperson, 18 buildings were burned down in one ward of the town that day.
“The fire only started after the battle had ended, so I think they started torching the houses after losing one of their men,” he said.
The same sniper killed another junta officer when fighting resumed the next day, triggering another spree of house burnings that destroyed 76 houses in the town’s TABC (Thantlang Association of Baptist Churches) ward, he added.
On Tuesday, fighting started at around 9am and continued through the day, according to the CDF-Thantlang spokesperson.
“There were shootouts all day yesterday. The military used a lot of heavy weapons,” he said, adding that at least 50 rounds of artillery were fired following a brief break at noon.
Five junta soldiers died during the battle, and one house was destroyed by an artillery shell, but no CDF casualties were reported.
The CDF also said it had been informed that an injured battalion commander and two privates were airlifted out of Thantlang by helicopter.
One of the buildings destroyed this week was a church, the group said.
Thantlang has been deserted since September, when all of its more than 8,000 residents fled a sustained assault by regime forces. Since then, 900 houses and 19 religious buildings have been burned to the ground, according to the CDF-Thantlang.
The military has not released any statement regarding the latest fighting in the town, but in the past has accused the CDF of setting fires there, despite evidence to the contrary.
