Fighting broke out in Hsihseng and Hopong townships, southern Shan State, on Thursday, displacing residents, according to the Palaung National Liberation Army (PNLA).
The regime shelled Kyaukkasar village in Hopong Township on Thursday, followed by airstrikes, meaning residents moved into forests, said the armed group.
Junta armored vehicles advanced into Hsihseng Township on Thursday. Troops occupied a hilltop pagoda northeast of Hsihseng, bombarded the town and torched houses, said the PNLA.
Junta airstrikes and shelling have targeted Hsihseng in the Pa-O autonomous region since late January after the PNLA and its allies began attacking the town.
The Irrawaddy could not independently verify the reports.
The PNLA’s political wing, the Pa-O National Liberation Organization, is a signatory of the 2015 National Ceasefire Agreement.
It participated in the regime’s “peace talks” after the 2021 coup.
The PNLA, several resistance groups and the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force have been fighting the regime and its allied Pa-O National Army since January.
In late January the PNLA said it would drive the junta from Pa-O territory and establish an administration to allow people to live freely. It urged militias not to help the dictatorship and work for national liberation.
On Thursday, PNLA and junta troops clashed for nearly an hour west of Hsihseng. Junta troops are deployed in religious buildings and health clinics and are attacking the town with shells and drones, the PNLA said.
Thirteen junta soldiers, including two officers, were reportedly injured in the fighting, and troops seized vehicles to rescue injured soldiers.
