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Two killed in northern Chin State as fighting erupts near Indian border

One of the victims was a civilian shot while passing a police station that had come under attack from resistance forces

Allied anti-regime groups attacked two junta targets in northern Chin State’s Tonzang Township earlier this week, triggering two days of clashes that left one resistance fighter and one civilian dead.

On Tuesday, a combined force of armed groups active in the area mounted an assault on a military outpost and a police station located near the state’s border with India.

Lalramchuana, a fighter from the Chinland Defence Force (CDF)-Hualngoram, was killed in the ensuing battle and three other members of the allied forces were injured, according to the groups that took part in the fighting.

The number of regime casualties could not be confirmed at the time of reporting.

The next day, junta troops opened fire on two civilians as they passed the police station, killing one and injuring the other, a local resident told Myanmar Now.

“It was a man and a woman. They tried to get away, but they kept shooting at them from above,” said the local, who asked not to be named.

The woman, who survived the attack, is currently receiving treatment in the hospital, the source added.

According to a resistance officer, the joint Chin forces were compelled to retreat after the second day of fighting due to insufficient manpower and weaponry.

The Chin National Army (CNF), CDF-Hualngoram, CDF-Tonzang, CDF-Kale, Kabaw and Gangaw, and People’s Defence Army participated in the attack.

Residents of Tonzang Township’s administrative centre and surrounding villages were forced to flee the fighting.

Tonzang occupies a mountainous area bordering northeastern India’s Mizoram State. According to the 2019 statistics of the General Administration Department, it has a population of more than 35,000 people.

A number of armed groups have emerged in Chin State since the military seized power in February 2021. Many have joined forces with the CNF, which was founded in 1988.

The entire state, with the exception of the Paletwa Township, has been has been placed under martial law due to the ongoing conflict.

Early last month, the leader of the coup regime, Min Aung Hlaing, ordered an intensification of operations against resistance forces, resulting in an increase in the number of clashes reported in the anti-junta strongholds of Chin and Karenni (Kayah) states and Sagaing Region.

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