Thousands displaced as junta convoy menaces villages in Magway Region

Humanitarian needs have grown urgent in Magway Region after more than 10,000 civilians fled their villages in the past month, fearing the approach of an enormous junta convoy making its way through Pakokku Township, locals and aid volunteers said. Having left an army base in Pakokku in the last week of May, the convoy—which is reportedly made up of more than 100 vehicles carrying hundreds of junta personnel—is now advancing through villages west of Kamma, a large village some 15 miles northwest of Pakokku. Most of the displaced have taken refuge in villages and monasteries throughout Magway Region’s Myaing, Pakokku, and Pauk townships. The longer they stay in these shelters, the more the resources needed to keep them fed and provisioned are dwindling, according to the humanitarian organisation Anyar Myay Civil Society Group-Myaing. “This displacement is the longest and most severe we’ve seen since the 2021 coup,” a spokesperson for the organisation said. “As time goes on, it is increasingly difficult for the people in these camps to make ends meet,” the spokesperson continued. “Some displaced families are sharing donated rice, while others who can afford it are now buying their own food. Two or three monasteries have been trying to feed thousands of people, and local residents in the township have started to donate out of goodwill.” Local resistance fighters have said that the convoy has been stopped near the villages of Than Bo village Ma Gyi Thone Pin, around 20 miles northwest of Pakokku, since June 24. They also noted that it was unclear whether they had recaptured control of an oil field in the area, as pro-junta propagandists have claimed recently on social media. “They are parked west of Kamma and have left some troops behind,” an officer of the local defence force said. “They haven’t been able to advance further. Whether or not they have taken the Thagyitaung oil field, it hasn’t changed the situation. Their main focus is securing the route rather than holding the oil field itself. Most importantly, they are hesitant to cross the Thagyitaung route,” he added. Oil fields Junta propaganda Telegram channels have widely reported that the junta convoy has regained control of the Thagyitaung oil field, which was seized by resistance forces along with other oil fields last year. More than 119 barrels of crude oil were extracted each day from the Thagyitaung field’s 20 wells at peak production, according to data from the junta-controlled ministry of electricity and energy. The field has also produced nearly 2.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, the data indicates. The Thagyitaung oil field remained operational for only a few months following Myanmar’s 2021 coup, and locals say production ceased entirely after resistance forces expanded their control in the area. The convoy operation The military regime used to transport shipments of weapons and supplies in large convoys in the early months following the 2021 coup. However, this practice declined due to the growing number of resistance supply raids, ambushes, and landmine attacks on military vehicles. The present convoy supply operation is the first to have occurred in Pakokku or Pauk Township since late 2023, apart from foraging operations by the junta-trained Pyu Saw Htee militias. “In the past, their columns moved quickly and they weren’t in vehicles. Their main objective was to search for rations for Pyu militia villages,” said a spokesperson for the Pauk Township People’s Defence Organisation. “Villagers fled, and then they would seize people’s belongings and deliver them to the Pyu militias. This time, they’re advancing in a convoy, but what’s unusual is that it’s been months and they’re still moving slowly. The difference now is the size of the force and the speed of the operation.” Resistance forces suspect that the convoy—which consists of freight trucks, excavators, and earth-moving machinery—is heading towards the Directorate of Defence Industries Factory 24 in Pauk Township, a plant that supplies the military with aluminium equipment. Airstrikes According to local people, the Myanmar army has been conducting continuous airstrikes in Pauk and Pakokku townships. “Over the past few days, fighter jets have appeared almost daily, sometimes replaced by Y-12 transport aircraft,” said a local man with connections to the resistance in Pauk Township. “When neither is present, paramotors are used. It seems air support is consistently provided whenever the convoy attempts to advance.” Resistance members, citing testimony from junta soldiers who deserted the convoy, said the soldiers being carried in the vehicles include a number of new trainees as well as more experienced soldiers. The military regime has been adding more freshly trained recruits to its ranks through mandatory conscription since last year after facing a shortage of manpower on several fronts of Myanmar’s civil war. Resistance members said they had noticed an increase in the number of infantry operations by ground troops relative to airstrikes, artillery barrages, and other kinds of attacks since May of this year, after the military had already enlisted several new batches of conscripts. The military is now forcing its 14th batch of conscripts into basic training. Ground advances by the junta in central areas of Myanmar like Magway have increased recently in parallel with a slowing of operations in northern Shan State. A junta convoy of about 15 vehicles also advanced through Kalay Township, Sagaing Region towards the Chin Hills—about 80 percent of which is now controlled by the resistance—in May. According to a report issued in late June by the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), nearly 3.5 million people have been displaced throughout Myanmar since the 2021 military coup, with ongoing clashes between regime forces and anti-junta armed groups causing the number to increase steadily.

Thousands displaced as junta convoy menaces villages in Magway Region

The column is advancing through villages west of Kamma, Pakokku Township, after leaving the army base in Pakokku in May, prompting villagers to flee

Subscribe for full access

Magway emerges as key front in junta’s strategy to claw back control of western Myanmar

Beyond the iron bars: Into a broader world of confinement

Burned, beaten, and hunted: Myanmar worker survives alleged torture in Thailand

In Myanmar’s heartland, desperation fuels a shadow trade in stolen identities

Subscribe for full access

Related Articles

Five villagers killed in Myanmar’s Bago Region, sparking calls for investigation

11 killed after passenger boat capsizes in Myanmar’s Rakhine State

Myanmar inflation hits 25% on US-Iran fuel shock: World Bank

Exclusive: American businessman arrested in Myanmar linked to lobbying dispute