An entire company of junta troops has surrendered to the Brotherhood Alliance since the tripartite ethnic force comprising the Arakan Army (AA), Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) launched its offensive in northern Shan State on October 27.
Light Infantry Brigade 143, based near Kan Mong village in Kunlong Township, capitulated on Monday, four days after the start of Operation 1027, an MNDAA spokesperson told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.
Forty-one junta troops from Light Infantry Brigade (LIB) 143, including a deputy commander, agreed to abandon their base instead of defending it against the ethnic armed group, the MNDAA claimed.
“They [junta troops] left their camp on Monday, leaving their weapons, ammunition and rations following talks with our alliance troops on Sunday, MNDAA representative Li Kyarwen said.
At least 15 pro-junta militia troops in Kokang, also known as Shan State Special Region 1, also surrendered to the ethnic alliance on Tuesday, according to the MNDAA.
The ethnic group claimed that over 100 regime and pro-junta militia troops had surrendered so far during Operation 1027. The Irrawaddy was unable to independently verify that claim.
Another junta infantry unit reportedly retreated from its outpost between Theinni and Lashio towns during a nighttime attack by the TNLA on Tuesday.
A Brotherhood Alliance statement issued on Tuesday called on junta troops to surrender their camps and outposts, declaring that alliance fighters will continue to target regime bases. Troops who surrendered would be guaranteed safety, medical care and other assistance to reunite with their families in dignity, it added.
MNDAA said it also provided travel expenses for troops from LIB 143 and allowed them to return to their families.
A video posted by The Kokang Facebook page shows a large cache of weapons and ammunition seized by the allied ethic group after junta troops abandoned the Kan Mong camp on Monday.
The ethnic alliance’s offensive has succeeded in capturing more than 80 junta and allied militia outposts in Kachin, northern Shan State and upper Mandalay Region.
Junta infantry suffered heavy casualties and lost strategic bases along with numerous heavy weapons and ammunition despite being supported by heavy artillery and airstrikes.
More than 50 junta troops and pro-junta militia have been captured alive by the ethnic armed groups, the MNDAA claimed.
Three towns in northern Shan State – Chin Shwe Haw, Nawngkhio and Theinni – have also been seized by the ethnic alliance during the ongoing Operation 1027.
Local resistance forces have joined the offensive, which aims to stop the military regime attacking ethnic armed organizations with heavy weapons and airstrikes, eradicate cyberscams in the Kokang region, and build a federal democratic union of self-administered regions.
