Over 40 Myanmar junta military troops including a major were killed and five others were arrested during clashes with resistance forces in Myingyan District, Mandalay Region between June 2 and 25, Natogyi People’s Defense Force (Natogyi PDF) said on Tuesday.
The PDF group, which forms Myingyan District PDF Battalion 4 under the command of the civilian National Unity Government (NUG), said it and several other resistance groups jointly engaged in over 12 clashes with regime forces over the past three weeks.
Another junta army major was among the five soldiers who were detained, Natogyi PDF said.
During the clashes, 21 weapons and a large amount of ammunition were seized from the defeated junta troops.
Video footage released by Natogyi PDF shows the bodies of several regime forces killed in a fierce clash after being bombarded by drones and attacked by resistance forces.
Residents said a series of clashes between junta troops and anti-regime resistance groups had rocked Natogyi Township in recent weeks.
Joint resistance forces clash with regime forces in Natogyi Township, Mandalay Region in June 2024. / Natogyi PDF
“We heard near daily fighting and bomb blasts. Recently, junta troops bombarded a village nearby in the absence of any clashes, injuring four villagers,” a villager from southern Natogyi Township told The Irrawaddy.
On Monday, a military unit of 40 soldiers burned down houses in Kyauk Tan Village in the northern part of Natogyi, forcing around 1,000 villagers to flee their homes.
After facing the constant attacks by resistance forces since June 2, the regime forces burned down around 600 civilian houses in seven villages near the clash sites in northern Natogyi, according to residents.
The regime forces killed four civilians during their raids on the villages. On one occasion when no clashes with resistance forces were reported, a junta fighter jet dropped four 300-lb bombs on Khan Sat Kone Village in Natogyi, injuring two Buddhist monks and two villagers.
The airstrike also destroyed the village monastery and some civilian houses.
“These days, flights occur over our area almost every night. We are concerned we will be bombed and we don’t dare to sleep deeply,” the southern Natogyi resident said.
