Wa army takes control of town in northern Shan State

The United Wa State Army (UWSA), Myanmar’s most powerful ethnic armed group, says it has taken over the town of Tangyan in northern Shan State to “protect” it from fighting in nearby Lashio. A spokesperson for the group told Myanmar Now that the takeover took place on Thursday after negotiations with local military commanders. “At the request of local people, and after negotiating with the military council, we entered the town to prevent the widening war from spreading to Tangyan,” said UWSA spokesperson Nyi Yang. “Taking this action will help to stabilise the Tangyan region,” he added. According to a report by the Shan Herald Agency for News, some 2,000 UWSA troops, mostly from its Brigade 171, based near the Thai border, had surrounded Tangyan prior to the talks. After an agreement was reached, UWSA troops began pouring into the town in numerous vehicles of various kinds, according to a local woman. “They said they wouldn’t let Tangyan be touched by conflict,” the woman said, noting that the group had also encircled Mong Pat, a town located about 25 miles west of Tangyan. Other residents of the area said the UWSA had taken control of the area between Tangyan and Mongyai, about 40 miles to the west on the road to Lashio. “We have taken those positions in advance for security reasons, in order to protect civilians from harm,” said Sam Bein, the spokesperson for the UWSA’s Brigade 171. “We can’t let fighting break out, which is why we are acting now to prevent it,” he added. A photo shared on social media shows UWSA troops entering Tangyan on July 11 Asked about reports that UWSA military vehicles filled with troops had been seen moving closer to Lashio, he denied that they were planning to join other groups fighting there. “Our troops are not going to Lashio. They’re only going as far as Nampawng, about halfway there,” he said. Intense clashes have broken out around Lashio—northern Shan State’s largest city—since July 3, when it became the latest focus of Operation 1027, a devastating anti-junta offensive launched by the Brotherhood Alliance in October of last year. That offensive, which was put on hold in January after the alliance agreed to a Chinese-brokered ceasefire, resumed late last month. Since then, the regime has faced further losses, most notably in Nawnghkio Township, near the military stronghold of Pyin Oo Lwin in Mandalay Region. While the junta remains in control of Lashio, where its Northeastern Regional Military Command is headquartered, thousands have fled the city over the past week as the fighting intensifies. Heavy artillery fire has killed at least seven civilians in the area since Wednesday, according to local sources. Although it is not part of the Brotherhood Alliance, the UWSA has cooperated with its members—the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the Ta’ang National Liberation Army, and the Arakan Army—in the past. In January, before the ceasefire went into effect, it joined the MNDAA in capturing the town of Hopang. The alliance later handed the town over to the UWSA along with Pan Lon, another town in Hopang Township.

Wa army takes control of town in northern Shan State

The negotiated takeover of Tangyan comes amid fears that fighting near Lashio could spread to areas east of the city

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