Resistance officials reiterate rejection of Chinese-brokered terms for northern Shan State, Mogok

Resistance forces commanded by the National Unity Government (NUG) will attack regime forces entering or occupying the towns of Mogok and Mongmit in accordance with a Chinese-backed ceasefire agreement, an NUG spokesperson said on Thursday. Nay Phone Latt, spokesperson for the NUG Prime Minister’s Office, clarified in a public statement that the NUG does not recognise will not abide by the terms of the ceasefire, which stipulate that the ethnic armed group Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) should withdraw its forces and relinquish control of the towns to the Myanmar military. The statement confirmed the NUG’s rejection of Chinese-supervised plans for dividing territory in Myanmar, expressed in a public statement by governing body’s defence ministry on December 6. The TNLA, joined by allies including NUG-commanded resistance forces captured the ruby-mining town of Mogok, Mandalay Region and the nearby town of Mongmit, northern Shan State (sometimes referred to by its Burmese name, Momeik) in July and August of 2024. When the TNLA, pressured by China, agreed to withdraw its forces from the two towns year, as part of a ceasefire agreement in October, a new NUG-commanded unit called the Mogok-Momeik Military Operations Command formed the following month with the express purpose of resisting the military’s takeover of the towns. The military junta began redeploying forces to Mogok and Mongmit late November, sending in nearly a thousand troops. According to Nay Phone Latt, the forces of the Mogok-Momeik Military Operations Command engaged in nine clashes with the military between November 30 until December 6, captured one of the army’s hill bases. Conditions in Mogok Since reentering Mogok, junta forces have continued to attack resistance controlled villages to the west of the town using artillery and drones, according to resistance fighters and local residents. Resistance forces are also reportedly striking the military’s positions using drones, and clashes have been ongoing since late November. According to pro-junta propaganda channels on Telegram, the military has been sending drones to fire on houses in the village where they believe resistance forces are sheltering. “Since Mogok is surrounded by mountains, they've set up camps on mountain tops on both sides and are firing. It's worse in the evenings. They keep firing," a resident of western Mogok Township said. Civilians with homes in Mogok have been reluctant to go back amid the ongoing clashes, in contrast to other towns surrendered by the TNLA this year, where residents have already been steadily returning. “People come back one or two at a time. Then they hear gunfire and leave again. Right now, there are very few people in town,” a resident of eastern Mogok Township said. Residents said that although the junta troops have returned, administrative functions have yet to resume fully in the town. “They’re staying at the hospital, police station, and schools,” a Mogok resident said. “So far, though, they don’t seem able to do much administrative work.” The lucrative gemstone extraction operations in the township have continued as normal, locals said. Conditions in Mongmit Junta troops stationed in Mongmit, 28 miles northeast of Mogok, have clashed with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) since regaining control of the town at the end of November. The KIA and various resistance allies including the NUG-commanded People’s Defence Forces, Arakan Army (AA), and All Burma Students’ Democratic Front (ABSDF) have kept control of areas outside Mongmit, while the junta has taken control of the urban centre. Mongmit residents said the junta air force bombed the village of Myit Son some 18 miles northwest of Mongmit on December 6, killing 11 civilians including people displaced from Mongmit by clashes. The situation inside the town remains tense since junta forces returned, according to residents. “Mongmit is not like Mogok. Our town is small. Right now we’re afraid to return,” a resident said. If they maintain control of Mogok and Mongmit townships, junta forces will be positioned to take control of Mandalay Region’s Mogok-Thabeikkyin road in a pincer operation, sending ground troops northward from Singu and southward from Mogok and northern Shan State, according to military analysts. Resistance forces including the Mandalay Region People’s Defence Forces (MDY-PDF), the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), and local groups currently control the route and have been unable to fend off a junta advance towards gold mining sites near Let Pan Hla, Singu Township.

Resistance officials reiterate rejection of Chinese-brokered terms for northern Shan State, Mogok

The publicly mandated National Unity Government (NUG) has declared for the second time in a week that it will attack the junta forces entering the towns of Mogok and Mongmit following a Chinese-mediated ceasefire

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