Myanmar junta's shocking defeat snowballs uprising

Members of the Karen National Liberation Army and the People's Defense Forces after seizing an army outpost in the southern part of the village of Myawaddy Photo: AP Photo/METRO

Reported that hundreds of soldiers have been forced to surrender in a humiliating defeat for Myanmar's embattled junta as rebels close in on a key border town on the border with Thailand.

Guerillas from the Karen National Liberation Army, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in the eastern part of the state The Karen say they are on the verge of capturing Myawaddy, a town that houses several strategic army posts and is on a major trade route with Thailand.

Myawaddy's fall would be the latest in a series of shocks to Myanmar's military regime since an uprising by three armed ethnic groups began in northern Shan state in October and snowballed across the country.

Myawaddy's fall would be the last in a series of shock blows to Myanmar's military regime. p>

The offensive, Operation 1027, was the biggest test for the junta since it seized power in a 2021 coup. Unprecedented coordination among rebel groups has strained military forces on multiple fronts and forced the concession of several border crossings with India and China.

A spokesman for the Karen National Union, which claims to represent the Karen ethnic minority, said that the KNLA, the group's armed wing, laid siege to army posts on the outskirts of Myawaddy over the weekend, including a base that served as the military's regional headquarters for nearly six decades.

News of a major setback for the military regime appeared to be reinforced on Sunday by the evacuation of government workers, officials and civilians to the nearby Thai town of Mae Sot.

Thai media reported that Myanmar's state-owned aircraft National Airlines made an unscheduled flight to the city from Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, to rescue people fleeing Myawaddy.

Bangkok's decision to cooperate with the Myanmar regime has sparked controversy in Thailand, with one leading opposition politician, Rangsiman Reem, calling the move «very unwise» on Twitter.

«What does Thailand get from helping Myanmar's military government?» at this time?» he said.

However, many Karen residents have no choice but to stay and resist the ongoing onslaught of the besieged military.

Sretta Taweesin, Prime Minister of Thailand, told Reuters that although the military junta is weakening, “they have strength, they have weapons.”

The rebels are gathering weapons in preparation to capture Myawaddy. Photo: AP Photo/METRO

The potential capture of Myawaddy follows weeks of fighting and a prolonged campaign of aerial bombing of civilians that forced nearly 700,000 people to flee. their homes.

The Free Burma Rangers, a humanitarian group operating in Karen state, reported a new massacre on Easter Day after warplanes bombed a monastery home to about 200 people. Eight people died, including a senior monk who was torn in half, the group said.

“One of the mothers whose 17-year-old daughter was killed was crying in my arms,” the FBI leader said. , Dave Eubank

“A mother’s cry pierced our hearts as she spoke of her lost child… “She was a special young girl to the world… My husband was shot dead last week by a sniper. Now my daughter is dead. What can I do?” he said.