Residents who fled Namhsan say fear of more deadly junta airstrikes is preventing their return after the northern Shan town was seized by the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA).
On Dec. 15, Namhsan became the second town captured by the TNLA, six days after its key junta base fell to Ta’ang troops. The town is home to over 4,000 residents.
The TNLA is part of the tripartite Brotherhood Alliance, which has captured 10 towns and hundreds of junta outposts since launching its Operation 1027 offensive on Oct. 27.
A married couple from Namhsan who fled to Taunggyi said they had expected to return to their home at the end of December, but their plans have been hindered by ongoing clashes in Namtu town, around 87 kilometers from Namhsan.
“We heard that Namhsan has been calm since December 19 but junta warplanes have been flying over the town as fighting is raging in Namtu,” a Namhsan resident who fled to Taunggyi said.
Volunteers said that most residents fled Namhsan to rural areas of the township to escape fighting that broke out between December 11 and 15.
“At least 20 percent of residents have now returned, but I spotted only a few people in the two residential wards of the city center. Other parts of the town are empty and silent, said a Namhsan resident who returned to the town on Monday.
He added that he couldn’t stay in his house as it had been damaged by junta shelling.
On Monday, a few volunteers cleared debris in Namhsan residential areas while also repairing plumbing and power lines damaged by the junta bombing.
Namhsan residents are stranded in Lashio, Kyaukme, the southern Shan state capital of Taunggyi and Mandalay Region, according to the volunteers.
At least six people were killed and another six injured by the junta’s bombardment of Namhsan town between December 11 and 15, according to the Ta’ang Women’s Organization (TWO).
Nearly 200 Namhsan residents have been sheltering at Aung Mingalar Namhsan Monastery in Lashio town since Dec. 15. The group of mostly women and children are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance as they are unable to return to their homes, the monastery’s abbot told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday.
“Around 50 people out of 230 have returned to their homes but the rest are still sheltering at the monastery as they feel it is not safe for them to return. Some of them have also lost their homes [in the bombing],” he added.
Junta airstrikes and shelling have damaged more than 60 houses, religious buildings and schools in Namhsan, according to volunteers.
