Those who have yet to flee the intensifying shelling in Nam Hpat Kar’s nine villages are trapped inside them – without reliable power or communications, or access to medical care – by road blocks, residents and volunteers helping them say.
“I tried to flee to Kutkai [Town] with my family yesterday, but our vehicle was stopped by an armed group at Shukhinthar Kone [a former junta outpost] only a few miles away … They didn’t let us go to Kutkai [Town]. We had no choice but to return home,” a father of a recently born infant explained. He was referring to troops from the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA).
The village tract in northern Shan State has seen an exodus of residents since the Brotherhood Alliance launched Operation 1027 on Oct. 27.
However, many people – including migrant workers – cannot leave its villages. Besides the intensifying shelling, blackouts, communication failures and the lack of medical assistance are making their lives perilous.
“We are in a dire situation. We need medical assistance for the elderly, pregnant women and infants [who are] still trapped in the village,” a resident said.
Several sections of the main road leading to Kutkai Town, about 30 miles away, are under the control of the TNLA, a member of the Brotherhood Alliance, sources said.
“Even ambulances were denied passage through the road. We pleaded desperately for permission to send injured people to Kutkai Hospital. [TNLA troops] only allowed us to go when we transferred the patients to a passenger vehicle,” a source close to volunteers said.
The Brotherhood Alliance comprises the TNLA, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance and Arakan Army. Together, they seized more than 300 junta outposts and bases between the launch of their offensive and Dec. 8.
The TNLA has been attacking junta bases and outposts in Kutkai Township.
Nam Hpat Kar village tract’s nine villages are home to more than 16,000 people, according to census data from 2014.
A junta base manned by troops from Light Infantry Battalion 123 has been indiscriminately shelling civilian targets. The base – the last major stronghold of the junta in Kutkai Township – has been frequently shelled by the TNLA.
In the latest shelling spree from the junta base – from Dec. 6 to 8 – at least two people, including a 10 year old, were killed and six other village residents were injured.
At least eight people lost their lives and 24 sustained injuries from indiscriminate shelling in the village tract between the launch of Operation 1027 and Dec. 9, volunteer groups say.
Indiscriminate shelling and airstrikes in northern Shan State killed at least 100 civilians and injured 160 more between the launch of Operation 1027 and Nov. 30, the National Unity Government said.
