JAKARTA - At least 194 Myanmar military soldiers, including a colonel and a colonel lieutenant were killed in clashes with the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the ethnic armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU).
Military tensions escalated in the Hpapun area, Shwe Kyin and Thaton Districts, in the Karen and Bago areas after the KNU military wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) 5th Brigade seized an outpost near the Salween River in Thi Mu Hta controlled by the military's 349 Light Infantry Division on March 27.
The KNU 5th Brigade also stormed a military border post on the banks of the Salween River in Thaw Le Hta, near the border with Mae Hong Song Province, Thailand on April 27.
"From March 27 to early May, 194 soldiers were killed and 220 other soldiers from the Myanmar military were injured in the clashes. Nine soldiers from the KNLA were killed and 10 others were injured, a spokesman for the KNU 5th Brigade, Lieutenant Colonel Saw Kler Doh, told the news outlet. local Karen Information Center, as reported by The Irrawaddy, Friday 7 May.
"During one month, the Myanmar military launched 27 air raids on the KNU Brigade 5 area, fired 47 artillery shells, and there were 407 clashes between the two sides," continued Lieutenant Colonel Saw Kler Doh.
In addition, Brigade 5 noted that the Myanmar military fired 575 artillery shells at local villages and farmlands. The airstrikes killed 14 civilians, injured 28, and destroyed 20 homes and two schools.
Currently, the Myanmar military regime continues to try to strengthen its troops in areas controlled by the KNU through the KNLA.
Last month, Lieutenant Colonel Saw Kler Doh told The Irrawaddy the KNLA attack was to show support for civilians and the new National Unity Government formed by elected lawmakers from the overthrown National League for Democracy (NLD) government.
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Recently, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that around 40,000 people had fled their homes in Papun District in Karen State and the Municipalities of Shwe Kyin, Kyaukkyi, and Nyaunglebin in the Bago Region, following a coup and military airstrikes in the area. It is estimated that 1,000, mostly elderly, sick, women, and children fled to Thailand.
Myanmar Coup. VOI editorial team continues to monitor the political situation in one of the ASEAN member countries. Casualties from civilians continue to fall. You can follow the news surrounding the Myanmar military coup by clicking on this link.
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