TNLA to hand over Mongmit and Mogok to junta after China-brokered talks

The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) said Wednesday it will return control of Mongmit in northern Shan State and Mogok, a major gemstone-mining hub in Mandalay Region, to Myanmar’s military regime. The TNLA, a powerful ethnic armed organisation based in northern Shan State, announced Wednesday that it will withdraw from Mongmit and Mogok under a deal reached with the military regime during two days of China-mediated talks in Kunming, Yunnan Province. The agreement includes a commitment by the junta to halt airstrikes in TNLA-controlled areas. Both sides signed a reciprocal ceasefire, with positions to be held and hostilities halted starting October 29. However, the statement did not specify how long the ceasefire would remain in effect.“From a positive point of view, the fighting has dragged on for nearly two years, leaving people suffering from the conflict," a man from the TNLA-held area told Myanmar Now. “Now, they may finally be free from the constant fear of airstrikes.”At least 12 towns including Mongmit and Mogok were seized by the TNLA during the second phase of Operation 1027, a large-scale anti-regime offensive launched by the Brotherhood Alliance, coalition of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Arakan Army (AA). This year, the Myanmar military has launched a counteroffensive and recaptured three towns—Nawnghkio, Kyaukme, and Hsipaw—which lie along a major trade route connecting central Myanmar to China. The military regime has also intensified aerial bombings on residential areas in TNLA-controlled territories in northern Shan State and Mandalay Region, targeting civilians and forcing thousands to flee. Since early October, at least 47 people were killed and more than a dozen others were injured in junta bombings in northern Shan State and Mandalay Region. With the new ceasefire in place, residents in TNLA-controlled areas may feel relief as junta airstrikes come to a halt. At least seven towns in northern Shan State—Namhsan, Namkham, Mangton, Namtu, Kutkai, Monglon, and Mongngawt—remain under the control of the TNLA Despite a pause on the violence, some resistance members are still looking at the ceasefire with trepidation. “We had no knowledge of the ceasefire agreement beforehand,” a resistance fighter based in Mogok Township told Myanmar Now. “But I feel sorry for the people of Mogok and Mongmit, especially those who supported the resistance groups.” “From a military standpoint, pulling back isn’t unusual,” the same source said. “I’m worried for the civilians who supported the resistance—what will become of them now?”

TNLA to hand over Mongmit and Mogok to junta after China-brokered talks

Agreement follows two days of China-mediated talks in Kunming, with the junta pledging to halt airstrikes in TNLA-held areas

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