Dozens of Myanmar Junta Forces Killed in Three Days of Clashes With Resistance
By The Irrawaddy 10 May 2023
At least 24 Myanmar junta troops as well as three resistance fighters were killed in the last three days as People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) stepped up attacks on regime targets across the country.
In one case, three resistance fighters including a couple were killed by junta air strikes on a resistance camp in Mon State.
The Irrawaddy has rounded up the following reports of significant attacks from PDFs.
Some military casualty figures could not be independently verified.
Regime troops bombed, ambushed in Sagaing
Combined resistance forces engage in a clash with regime forces in Salingyi Township on Monday. / NRG
At least 13 junta troops were killed in Salingyi Township, Sagaing Region on Monday when five PDF groups ambushed a military detachment of 150 troops at a port on the Chindwin River, said the PDF group National Revolutionary Guards.
First, the PDF groups used land mines to ambush regime troops who were preparing to board a ferry, killing three soldiers.
After being ambushed, the angry soldiers burned down a bazaar nearby, also torching several motorbikes belonging to civilians.
The PDF fighters attacked the regime forces again with heavy explosives and firearms from close range while they were at the port. Citing military informants, the PDF groups said another 10 soldiers were killed in the second attack.
During the clash, a resistance defender passed out from exhaustion while another suffered minor injuries, the resistance group said.
Resistance groups conduct repeated attacks on regime forces in Sagaing
Many regime forces are thought to have been killed and injured in Shwebo Township, Sagaing Region on Monday when combined PDF groups repeatedly attacked regime forces, said the PDF group Black Wolf Army, which coordinated the attacks.
First, the PDF groups used three land mines to ambush regime forces traveling on 15 motorbikes near a village in Kyauk Myaung town at 12 p.m.
Thirty minutes later, the PDF groups clashed with a military column of 40 troops leaving the town of Shwebo.
That afternoon, the resistance groups conducted another ambush, targeting two military trucks from military Infantry Battalion 12 with land mines as they were traveling on the Shwebo-Kyauk Myaung highway.
There were no resistance casualties in the incidents, said Black Wolf Army.
Military column ambushed in Tanintharyi
Many regime forces are believed to have been killed and injured in Dawei Township, Tanintharyi Region on Tuesday when Dawei Collective Column used land mines to ambush a military detachment returning from the Thai border, the resistance group said.
Two of several villagers who had been taken as human shields by the regime forces were also injured in the land mine blasts. The resistance groups apologized for harming the civilians.
The groups urged residents to avoid regime forces.
Military convoy ambushed in Kayah
Resistance forces ambush a military convoy of reinforcements in Loikaw Township on Sunday evening. / KNDF Pekon Zone
Many regime forces are believed to have been killed or injured in Loikaw Township, Kayah State on Sunday when the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) coordinated with Pekon PDF to ambush a military convoy of 17 vehicles on the Mobye-Loikaw highway, the resistance groups told the media.
The convoy was transporting junta reinforcements to Kayah State’s capital Loikaw from Pekon Township in southern Shan State.
Three resistance fighters killed in junta air strikes in Mon
Three resistance fighters including a couple were killed in Ye Township, Mon State on Sunday when the junta conducted air strikes on the resistance camp of Albino Tiger Company 1, said the resistance group.
At 11 p.m. on Sunday night, a junta fighter jet dropped two 500-lb bombs on the PDF camp. The following afternoon, an Mi-35 helicopter gunship continued the attack on the resistance camp.
Miliary headquarters attacked in Karen
PDF fighters fire mortar rounds at a military battalion in Kawkareik Township on Monday. / Justice Soldier PDF
At least three regime forces including a lieutenant colonel and a captain were reportedly killed in Kawkareik Township, Karen State on Monday when three PDF groups jointly attacked the base of military Infantry Battalion 97, according to resistance groups.
The attack was in response to the junta air strikes on a camp of the Albino Tiger Column in Ye Township, Mon State on Sunday, which killed three resistance fighters, said the resistance group Justice Solider PDF, which is Squadron 5 of the Albino Tiger Column.
Military vehicles hit by mines in Mandalay
Vehicles carrying regime forces face blasts in Madaya Township on Monday / Tawgyi Mway Bwe PDF
The resistance group Tawgyi Mway Bwe said it used land mines to attack vehicles carrying army officers in Madaya Township, Mandalay Region on Monday.
Details of the damage and military casualties were unknown.
Eight junta forces killed in drone strikes in Mandalay, Magwe
Recent drone strikes conducted by Myingyan District Drone Strike team against regime targets / MDDST
At least eight regime forces were killed in Mandalay and Magwe regions on Sunday and Tuesday when combined PDF groups conducted drone strikes on police stations and junta-run township administration offices, said Myingyan District Drone Strike Team, which joined the attacks.
The group said it coordinated with two PDF groups from Magwe and Sagaing regions to conduct drone strikes on the police station in Tilin town in Magwe Region on Tuesday morning. Police casualties were unknown.
On Sunday, the PDF groups conducted drone strikes on regime forces stationed at the office of the Tilin Township General Administration Department, killing three soldiers and injuring four others.
The drone unit also claimed to have killed five policemen when its drones dropped bombs on a police station in Ngazun town in Mandalay Region on Sunday afternoon.
