August 15, 2023
In the Karen State, it’s reported that a fierce battle is taking place between the military council Junta and the KNLA joint forces at Latt Khat Taung in Myawaddy Township.
In the early morning of August 15th, due to the entering of the military council army was in a column with a large number of forces, so there was a clash between the two sides and the Infantry Battalion 275 of the military council army and the military army which stationed near the Statue of Gautama Buddha are firing heavy weapons, said an official of Cobra Column.
He said, “The military council has been deployed, and the clashing is happening until now. There are many forces, and the military regime which is stationed near the Statue of Gautama Buddha, is helping to shoot with all kinds of weapons. They were shooting from all sides, and now they are shooting continuously all over the place,” he said.
He said that even though there were casualties on the side of the Military Council during the clash between the two sides, it could not be confirmed yet.
Around 10 a.m., a local resident of Myawaddy Town said that the BGF under the military council was also reinforcing, as well as the bombardment by two jet fighters.
“There are three dropping bombs by aircraft in a moment and so the house is shaking. There were two aircraft and the battle was fierce and wide,” said a woman.
A man said, “There are about three or four BGF vehicles from the Town, going up that way with 8/10 people per car .”
Despite the ongoing fighting, the basic education government schools under the military council in Myawaddy Town have not been closed, but most of the parents of the students are no longer sending their children to school by the local residents of Myawaddy town.
Last July 21, the KNLA joint forces attacked and captured the Latt Khat Taung army base, and the military council forces often formed a column to take over the army base and owing to this reason, the fighting continued almost every day.
In addition,because fighting is happening almost every day, more than 600 local residents in the vicinity of Kyauk Lone Gyi and Myitta Linn Myaing and Tone Tada Village are also fleeing the war in monasteries in Myawaddy Town, local residents said.
The areas within Karen State such as Myawaddy, Kawkareik, Kyondoe, Kyar Inn Seik Gyi, Hpapun, and Than Daung Gyi, according to KNLA news sources, there is a battle between the Military Council Army and the KNLA joint forces almost in every day and moreover, there are military tensions in some areas of Hpa-An and Hlaing Bwe townships.
News: Naw Phu Phu
Photo. CJ
Phar Si Than (People’s Radio Myanmar)