Thousands displaced as TNLA targets another town in northern Shan State

Clashes between junta troops and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and its allies have forced thousands of people living in the town of Hsipaw in northern Shan State to flee over the weekend, according to relief workers and displaced residents. The exodus began after the TNLA-led forces, which have been waging an ongoing offensive across the region since late June, launched attacks on the regime’s Infantry Battalion (IB) 23 base, located about one mile north of the town’s centre, on Saturday. Since then, around a third of the town’s population has fled, according to a representative of the Tai Youth Humanitarian Assistance Committee, a local social welfare group. While some have taken shelter in the surrounding area, many others have fled to southern Shan State or neighbouring Mandalay Region, he added. Hsipaw is strategically located along a major trading route between Kyaukme, a town captured by the TNLA on August 6, and Lashio, the region’s largest city, which was seized by the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army on August 3. According to the census conducted in 2014, the town of Hsipaw accounts for nearly 12 percent of Hsipaw Township’s population of around 180,000. In addition to the IB 23 base, there are also two other bases located less than three miles north of Hsipaw—one operated by Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 503 and another by LIB 504. Speaking to Myanmar Now on Monday, a source close to the TNLA said that all three bases are still under regime control. “We still can’t claim full control of the town. The IB 23, LIB 503, and LIB 504 troops remain active and we are continuing our attacks on these enemy bases,” the source said.The Ta’ang ethnic armed group also claimed that junta warplanes carried out at least a dozen airstrikes near Hsipaw since the fighting began and airlifted supplies and reinforcements into the area on Sunday. Residents of the area have also reported heavy artillery fire. “We heard the explosion from artillery strikes as well as gunfire, but the clashes didn’t occur inside the town,” a displaced resident of Hsipaw Township said on Monday. Locals also said that the entrance to the town has been closed and that communication has also been down in Hsipaw since the start of the conflict. However, no airstrikes were reported as of 1pm on Monday, according to social media posts by residents. While the TNLA continues to fight junta troops just outside of Hsipaw, the group says it has already taken control of a number of key positions in the town. So far, it has captured a police station, and on Sunday it took control of Hsipaw Prison and released around 100 inmates, a representative from the TNLA’s information team said. Since resuming Operation 1027, an anti-regime offensive launched late last year, on June 25, TNLA-led forces have captured the towns of Nawnghkio, Mongmit, and Kyaukme in northern Shan State and the ruby-mining hub of Mogok in Mandalay Region.

Thousands displaced as TNLA targets another town in northern Shan State

Residents of Hsipaw flee as the Ta’ang armed group intensifies its attacks on junta bases north of the town

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