A convoy of reinforcements the junta sent to the northern Shan State capital Lashio retreated after suffering heavy losses in an early morning ambush by the Myanmar Nationalities Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and its allies on Tuesday, according to resistance sources and Shan media.
The 30-truck convoy carrying an estimated 400 reinforcements was ambushed near Man Bang town, about 95 kilometers southeast of Lashio.
The reinforcements included young men who were forcibly drafted under the conscription law activated earlier this year, a military analyst close to resistance groups said.
Charred remains of junta troops are visible in a video showing MNDAA fighters inspecting the destroyed vehicles, some of which were still burning. The video has gone viral in Myanmar.
Reports said the convoy was led by Brigadier General Than Tun Aung, a commander of the junta’s Middle East Command based in Kholam town in southern Shan State. The convoy was ambushed while traveling to Lashio on the road between Tangyan and Nampawng towns.
“Eight military vehicles were destroyed or burned and up to 80 regime troops, including the brigadier general suffered injuries. The commander was sent back to Kholam and the other injured soldiers were treated in Tangyan town,” the military analyst told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.
It is now impossible for the junta to retake Lashio because it has to rely on a longer land route to supply and reinforce its troops in and around the city, the analyst said, noting that the MNDAA and its allies were fighting to take control of the city’s airport.
About 50 regime forces were killed in the ambush, according to Shan media reports citing troops on the ground.
The Brotherhood Alliance of three ethnic armies launched Operation 1027 in October last year. The coordinated offensive steamrolled through northern Shan State and was closing in on its goal of liberating the region from the regime’s military when a China-brokered ceasefire halted its progress in January.
Since then, all land routes to Lashio have been controlled by resistance groups. The junta only had access to the city by air.
It lost that access after the MNDAA and its allies captured parts of the airport north of Lashio. They are now fighting for control of Lashio Airport.
Intense clashes continued on Thursday as resistance groups attacked the regime’s remaining bases and positions in Lashio. They are poised to assert complete control over the city after seizing the headquarters of the junta’s North Eastern Command last Thursday.
The MNDAA on Saturday announced the formation of a commission to rebuild and administer the city.
The MNDAA resumed Operation 1027 on July 3 along with its allies by attacking the junta’s outposts and battalion headquarters defending Lashio.
Another member of the Brotherhood Alliance, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army is attacking junta troops west of Lashio in both northern Shan State and northern Mandalay Region. It is fighting alongside other resistance groups, including People’s Defense Force units, under the command of the civilian National Unity Government.
Since the resumption of Operation 1027, ethnic armies and allied resistance groups have captured six towns and cities, including Lashio, and about 100 junta bases – including several battalion headquarters – in northern Shan State and northern Mandalay Region.
In the first phase of Operation 1027, the ethnic alliance and its allies seized 17 towns, 24 junta battalion headquarters and hundreds of the junta’s frontline bases, including command centers.
