Thousands of people have fled fighting near a village in southern Shan State’s Pinlaung Township since intense clashes erupted in the area late last week, according to local sources.
The conflict began when anti-regime fighters launched attacks on a joint force of junta and Pa-O National Army (PNA) troops near the village of Hsawng Pyaung at around 5am on May 17, a man from the village told Myanmar Now.
“I was still in bed when the fighting broke out. It began in the morning after the resistance forces entered the area, and spread along the lower path of the pagoda hill to the west of Hsawng Pyaung,” the man said.
He added that the regime has conducted at least two airstrikes a day since the fighting started. Heavy artillery fire could still be heard west of the village late Thursday, other sources said.
Hsawng Pyaung is a. . .
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