The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and its allies have entered Mongmit town in northern Shan State and are attacking the headquarters of a junta battalion south of the town, TNLA spokeswoman Lwei Yay Oo told The Irrawaddy.
“Our troops have taken positions in the town. The fighting is still raging south of the town,” she said on Tuesday evening.
The town of about 65,000 people is a major target for resistance forces and was briefly captured by the Kachin Independence Army and its allies in January before being retaken by junta troops.
The two sides are fighting in Taung Kaing village adjacent to the 21st Military Operations Command 3.2 kilometers south of Momeik town. Three of the junta’s light infantry battalions (223, 276 and 348) are involved in the battle.
One Momeik resident said junta troops withdrew from Mongmit on Monday to a battalion headquarters south of the town.
Civilians still trapped in the town are facing severe food shortages, he said.
“The TNLA has not yet allowed residents to return to the town. Two monasteries were burned down during the fighting. Food has almost run out as roads have been blockaded for a long time,” he said.
The TNLA has reportedly arrested some civilians on suspicion of having ties to the regime, triggering panic among the town’s residents. The TNLA spokeswoman said she had not yet received updates from the town.
Following its seizure of Kyaukme town in northern Shan State, the TNLA announced on July 11 that it had arrested and prosecuted 180 civilians in the town. They were accused of being junta informants, drug users and sellers, and thieves or were arrested because they were found to be in illegal possession of weapons or exhibited disorderly conduct, the TNLA said.
The TNLA is also engaged in a fierce battle for Mogoke town in Mandalay Region. The ruby town is about 28 km from Mongmit. The TNLA and its allies control western Mogoke and are attacking junta positions east of the town.
On Sunday, three civilians were killed and at least nine injured, two severely, by junta artillery strikes east of the town, the TNLA said.
TNLA-led forces restarted Operation 1027 on June 25, launching attacks on Nawnghkio, Kyaukme, Hsipaw, Lashio and Mongmit towns in northern Shan State and Mogoke Township in Mandalay. They now control Nawnghkio and have partial control of Kyaumke and Mongmit towns.
The TNLA and its Brotherhood Alliance partner the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army declared a unilateral ceasefire until Thursday to coincide with the third plenary session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in Beijing. They said, however, that they retain the right to self-defense.
Despite the announced ceasefire, fighting continued as the regime sent reinforcements and launched assaults.
