The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and allied resistance forces seized the airport and the base of a junta armored battalion in Bhamo over the weekend, while also surrounding the headquarters of an artillery battalion, amid escalating clashes in the township, KIA spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu told The Irrawaddy.
“Along with seven armored vehicles, we seized the junta’s Armored Battalion 7006 base at around 3:45 p.m. on Saturday. Also, [on Sunday] KIA and allied forces seized Bhamo Airport,” he said on Monday.
Naw Bu and residents of Bhamo who have fled into nearby rural areas said the already heavy clashes continue to escalate in Bhamo, with the junta conducting near round-the-clock air and artillery strikes on the township.
Colonel Naw Bu added that KIA and allied forces had taken up positions surrounding the regime’s Artillery Battalion 366.
“We are taking positions close to Artillery Battalion 366 and Military Operations Command 21 and continue to attack them. Meanwhile, the junta is conducting airstrikes,” he said.
Naw Bu added that the KIA and its allies on Monday seized an estate housing a Sa Ya Pha military intelligence unit in Bhamo.
Residents said Bhamo was now a ghost town, with most inhabitants having fled into rural areas and nearby townships considered safer.
Early this month, the KIA and allied forces seized Kachin State’s Mansi Township. They have launched attacks on junta troops retreating from that area, inflicting heavy casualties.
The KIA and its allies, which include People’s Defense Forces groups loyal to the civilian National Unity Government, have seized over 300 junta outposts and bases in Kachin State.
They have occupied around 15 towns and the former Kachin State Special Region 1, a rare-earth mining hub along the Chinese border. The KIA has also seized two northern Shan State towns.
