Ongoing clashes between Burmese regime troops and the Shan State Army-North (SSA-North) have killed at least three civilians in the past week and forced nearly 500 others to flee from their villages, according to residents of Mongshu Township.
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Thursday, local people who are helping the victims said that six villagers had been injured in the fighting in addition to the three killed, who included one 10-year-old child.
They said the injured civilians, from the village of Honam in Mongshu Township, were hurt during a clash on Monday.
“We are trying to take care of them because they are afraid to go to the hospital,” said one Mongshu resident, speaking on condition of anonymity.
There has been continuous fighting between junta troops and the SSA-North in Mongshu and Tangyan townships since last month. According to the Thailand-based Shan Herald Agency for News, the conflict is severely affecting civilians in several townships.
“Many villagers are taking shelter in the homes of their relatives. There has been a notable increase in the number of people coming into town from the surrounding area,” said a resident of Mongshu.
Those caught in the crossfire are not the only ones on the move. Sources said a Burmese military commander has ordered people from around 11 villages in Kunhing, Namsan and Kyethi townships to leave their homes as part the Burmese army's “four-cuts” strategy, aimed at depriving insurgents of local support.
Military sources said that the Burmese army is planning to mount a full-scale assault on SSA-North Brigade 1, based in Kyethi Township, before the end of this month. As part of the offensive, it has sent 10 battalions to blockade the Brigade 1 headquarters.
The SSA-North controls territory in Kyethi and Monghsu townships in southern Shan State and Mongyai and Tangyan townships in the northern part of the state.
Brigade 1, led by Col Pang Fa, is the strongest of the SSA-North's three brigades, with an estimated 3,000 troops. The former cease-fire group's other two brigades, 3 and 7, have joined a Border Guard Force (BGF) under Burmese military command, but Brigade 1 refused to accede to the scheme.
The Burmese regime has pressured 17 cease-fire armies to accept the BGF plan, but only a few have joined. The others, including the largest groups—the United Wa State Army (UWSA), with 30,000 troops, and the 10,000-strong Kachin Independence Army—have refused.
The UWSA and the Shan State Army-South, a non-cease-fire armed group, have offered support to SSA-North Brigade 1 since it resumed hostilities with the Burmese army.
Source:http://irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20956
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Thursday, local people who are helping the victims said that six villagers had been injured in the fighting in addition to the three killed, who included one 10-year-old child.
They said the injured civilians, from the village of Honam in Mongshu Township, were hurt during a clash on Monday.
“We are trying to take care of them because they are afraid to go to the hospital,” said one Mongshu resident, speaking on condition of anonymity.
There has been continuous fighting between junta troops and the SSA-North in Mongshu and Tangyan townships since last month. According to the Thailand-based Shan Herald Agency for News, the conflict is severely affecting civilians in several townships.
“Many villagers are taking shelter in the homes of their relatives. There has been a notable increase in the number of people coming into town from the surrounding area,” said a resident of Mongshu.
Those caught in the crossfire are not the only ones on the move. Sources said a Burmese military commander has ordered people from around 11 villages in Kunhing, Namsan and Kyethi townships to leave their homes as part the Burmese army's “four-cuts” strategy, aimed at depriving insurgents of local support.
Military sources said that the Burmese army is planning to mount a full-scale assault on SSA-North Brigade 1, based in Kyethi Township, before the end of this month. As part of the offensive, it has sent 10 battalions to blockade the Brigade 1 headquarters.
The SSA-North controls territory in Kyethi and Monghsu townships in southern Shan State and Mongyai and Tangyan townships in the northern part of the state.
Brigade 1, led by Col Pang Fa, is the strongest of the SSA-North's three brigades, with an estimated 3,000 troops. The former cease-fire group's other two brigades, 3 and 7, have joined a Border Guard Force (BGF) under Burmese military command, but Brigade 1 refused to accede to the scheme.
The Burmese regime has pressured 17 cease-fire armies to accept the BGF plan, but only a few have joined. The others, including the largest groups—the United Wa State Army (UWSA), with 30,000 troops, and the 10,000-strong Kachin Independence Army—have refused.
The UWSA and the Shan State Army-South, a non-cease-fire armed group, have offered support to SSA-North Brigade 1 since it resumed hostilities with the Burmese army.
Source:http://irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20956
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