Thousands of civilians are fleeing fighting on the border between Burma and Thailand, while rebels press to flush out troops of the Burmese junta who have been holed up for several days under a bridge.
3 mins
After a week of relative calm, fighting between the Burmese junta and armed ethnic groups has resumed near the Thai border, forcing thousands of civilians to flee the area. The clashes broke out near the town of Myawaddy on the Burmese side, a strategic location for trade with Thailand, and where government troops were forced to withdraw on April 11 in the face of pressure from the rebels.
Witnesses on both the Thai and Myanmar sides of the border told Reuters they heard explosions and heavy machine gun fire near a strategic bridge between Friday evening and Saturday. During previous clashes, the Karen National Union (KNU), which is fighting the junta, indicated that Burmese soldiers had taken refuge under a bridge linking Myawaddy to Mae Sot, in Thailand.
Read alsoBurma: Asean “deeply concerned” by the escalation of the conflict in Myawaddy
In a message published on social networks coordinated by the rebels.
In its evening newscast, Myanmar’s state channel MRTV said ethnic minority militias and rebels had used shelling to attack junta troops, and government forces had responded with strikes. air strikes to try to maintain stability, pushing the rebels to withdraw after suffering numerous losses.
But a Thai army unit stationed near the border with Burma said no ” loss was (had) not been reported ” For now.
Between 2,000 and 3,000 refugees
The police chief of the town of Mae Sot, Thailand, told AFP on Saturday afternoon that the fighting “ intensified “. “ Around 2,000 people » crossed the border and were searched by local authorities, according to this source. “ We gave them food and moved them to a safer place “, he added. According to figures compiled by the Thai army and provincial authorities, 3,027 people had crossed the border on Saturday to seek temporary refuge in the town of Mae Sot.
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on X that he was monitoring the situation closely and would provide humanitarian aid. However, he warned that Thailand was “ ready to protect its borders and the security of its people “.
Read alsoBurma: fighting continues in Myawaddy, Thailand ready to welcome refugees
Myanmar’s military faces its biggest challenge since taking control of the country. It faces multiple low-intensity conflicts and struggles to stabilize an economy that has collapsed since the 2021 coup against Aung San Suu Kyi’s government. The country is plunged into a civil war between the military on one side and, on the other, an alliance of established ethnic minority armies and a resistance movement born from the bloody repression of anti-coup protests by the junta.
Capture of Myawaddy and army outposts surrounding it is a significant setback for a junta under Western sanctions, the city being a crossing point for border trade. Thailand’s Foreign Ministry said it hoped the situation would normalize quickly and had asked the Myanmar government to ensure fighting did not spill over the border.