The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and allied People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) launched an attack to seize Mongmit (Momeik) town in northern Shan State at around 6 am on Thursday.
Mongmit residents are now trapped by fierce fighting between the resistance allies and four Myanmar junta battalions based in the town.
KIA and PDF troops are mainly targeting Mongmit’s hill-top tactical command base and police station while regime forces retaliate with air and artillery strikes.
“They have been fighting since around 6 am. Residents are hiding in bomb shelters. I heard that [allied resistance forces] seized Arthan Ward in the town at around 10.30 am. Fighting is still going on. Some residents fled the town over the past few days, but many stayed behind and are trapped,” said a Mongmit resident.
The four junta units based in Mongmit are Light Infantry Battalion 348 under Northern Command, a tactical unit, and Infantry Battalions 223 and 276 overseen by 21st Military Operations Command based in Kachin State’s Bhamo.
Another resident said: “It appears that the town has been besieged. There are people trapped here. I can hear the booms of planes and artillery strikes. [Junta] aircraft bombed Shwe Zarli [village close to the town] and houses are burning.”
Fighting between junta troops and combined forces of the KIA, All Burma Students Democratic Front, Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and PDFs erupted in Mongmit Township in early January.
On January 5, TNLA-led forces captured a junta outpost at a village six miles east of Mongmit Town. The regime responded with air and artillery strikes, forcing many residents to flee the town.
Mongmit is the latest target in a coordinated resistance offensive across northern Shan State that has seized over 500 junta positions, including military command centers, and around 16 towns and vital trade routes with China.
Mongmit Township lies on the Shweli River and is home to 65,000 people living in the town and 97 surrounding villages, according to the 2019 census.
Mongmit town is located just 28 miles from Mandalay’s Mogoke, known worldwide as “Ruby Land” for its gemstone mines.
