YANGON: An anti-junta group in Myanmar’s Mandalay region has continued to make significant gains in a key township following the collapse of a truce between insurgent armies and the military, who seized power in a 2021 coup.
The Mandalay People’s Defense Force (PDF) said that it captured a junta camp at the Alpha cement factory in Madaya township on July 14 and another camp at Taung Ta Ngar on July 16. Madaya is situated just 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of Mandalay, the capital of the region and Myanmar’s second-largest city.
The Mandalay PDF has been fighting alongside the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) since late October 2023. The TNLA, part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance along with the Arakan Army and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, had pushed back junta forces in several regions before agreeing to a shaky China-brokered truce with the junta in January. The ceasefire collapsed on June 25, prompting renewed hostilities.
Following the ceasefire’s collapse, the TNLA launched attacks on Mandalay’s Mogoke township and several towns in Shan state to the east, while the Mandalay PDF concentrated its efforts on Madaya and Singu townships in Mandalay region. The PDF reported that it had captured 28 junta camps as of Wednesday.
Osmon, a spokesperson for the Mandalay PDF, told Radio Free Asia that Myanmar’s military suffered heavy losses in the battle for Madaya. “There were many casualties on the side of the junta in these operations. We have seized corpses and arrested junta soldiers,” he said. “There were some casualties on the side of Mandalay PDF.” Osmon confirmed that the PDF had taken more than 150 prisoners. He added that the group is currently engaged in a fierce battle with junta forces at Madaya’s Kyauk Ta Dar base.
On Tuesday, three civilians were killed when a shell hit Madaya town, close to its train station and main market. “It happened around 8 a.m.,” said a resident who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals. “A 44-year-old woman, a 30-year-old woman, and a two-year-old girl were killed.” Another resident indicated that the blast occurred near a location where junta troops were stationed.
