Myanmar resistance forces claim to have killed around a dozen junta soldiers during a clash in Depayin Township, Sagaing on Saturday.
Fighting broke out near Aye Thar Yar village in western Depayin on Saturday evening, when combined forces of the Burma National Revolutionary Army, Shwebo District Battalion 12, and local Peoples Defense Forces (PDFs) confronted a junta unit of around 100 soldiers.
Thousands of civilians have fled the area after being targeted by junta troops in recent days, according to local reports.
Saturday’s clash decimated the regime force and left many soldiers wounded, Shwebo District Battalion 12 said. The resistance groups retreated when a junta Mi-35 helicopter gunship arrived and strafed the area.
“The helicopter opened fire for 15 minutes, but no casualties were reported. However, the junta ground troops raided nearby villages and killed residents,” a spokesperson for Shwe Bo District Battalion 12 told The Irrawaddy.
The same day, regime troops beheaded a civilian and arrested two others in Lat Tee village, while wounding a resident of Aye Thar Yar village with artillery, according to locals.
On Monday, troops stationed in Aye Thar Yar village launched a raid on Bagan village, where they torched houses. In neighboring Na Bae Hla village, they killed a 50-year-old civilian and arrested another man, aged 37, the Depayin Refugee Support Group reported.
“The two villagers were challenged by the troops as they fled. The arrested man is disabled so was unable to escape,” a representative of Depayin Refugee Support Group told The Irrawaddy.
The group estimates that over 10,000 civilians have fled from a dozen villages in western Depayin amid heavy rain in recent days.
“Some villages have been abandoned in the last five days. The displaced civilians are facing growing hardship as the days go by, especially from hunger and food shortages,” the representative told the Irrawaddy.
Junta troops left for Depayin Town on Monday afternoon, but the villagers have not yet dared to return to their homes.
Frequent junta raids and arson attacks have left Depayin with among the highest number of torched houses in Sagaing Region.
