Thread: 1,200 people escape Myawaddy into Mae Sot today as fierce fighting flares

Fierce fighting flared up today in Myawaddy township, close to Thailand’s Mae Sot district in Tak province, between anti-junta Karen rebels and Myanmar forces, forcing about 1,200 Myanmar civilians to cross the shallow Moei river, marking the border, and to seek temporary refuge on Thai soil.


Two holding centres in Tha Sai Luad sub-district have been set up to house the displaced people.


Anti-junta Karen rebel forces launched mortar and drone attacks early this morning against Myanmar government forces, holding out in trenches and bunkers near the second Thai-Myanmar friendship bridge in Myawaddy province, just opposite Tha Sai Luad sub-district in Mae Sot district of Thailand’s Tak province.


The attacks triggered an intense firefight, involving mortar duels and exchanges of small arms fire. No reports are available about casualties on either side. The junta also sent helicopter gunships and MiG-29 fighters to strafe and bomb rebel forces.


The Royal Thai Air Force sent two F-16 jet fighters on patrol mission along the Thai-Myanmar border in Tak and Mae Hong Son provinces, as a warning against intrusion into Thai air space and any possible spill-over of the fighting onto Thai soil.


Fighting also erupted inside Myanmar, close Mae Hong Son province today. Five 60mm and one 120mm mortar shell, allegedly fired from Myanmar, smashed into the border area of Sam Laeb sub-district in Sob Moei district, but no injuries were reported.


It is, however, reported that the rebel forces have built three detention facilities in Myawaddy, to hold about 100 Myanmar government troops captured in recent fighting in Myawaddy province. About 600 more captured Myanmar troops are being separately held, opposite Mae Ramat district of Tak.


Associate Professor Dulyapak Preecharush, deputy director of the Southeast Asian Study Institute of Thammasat University, said that the fighting in Myanmar has developed into a full-scale war between the junta and rebel forces.


He said that, although the government forces have lost much territory and small towns to the rebel forces, they still are in control of major strategic townships.


1,200 people escape Myawaddy into Mae Sot today as fierce fighting flares | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

More displaced people flee from Myanmar into Thailand

Fighting between Myanmar government and Karen rebel forces continued throughout Saturday night and into Sunday morning, driving more civilians to seek temporary refuge in Mae Sot district of Thailand’s western province of Tak.


The rebels launched mortar and drone attacks against the remnants of Myanmar troops, who have retreated from their last camp in Myawaddy township and are now holding out in trenches and bunkers near the second Thai-Myanmar friendship bridge, about 1.5 km from the Thai border in Tha Sai Luad sub-district, Mae Sot district.


Meanwhile, the Myanmar government responded with air strikes, using Russian-made MiG-29 fighters and helicopter gunships, against rebel positions in Myawaddy. The sound of bomb explosions and automatic gunfire could be heard from the Thai border throughout the night.


Thai security sources say that the warring sides are believed to have suffered casualties in the bombings, but no details were available.


The number of people from Myanmar taking temporary shelter in holding centres in Ban Wang Takhien in the past few days has risen to about 2,000. Thai security officials expect more to flee across the border into Thailand if the fighting continues to escalate.


Myawaddy township, a major hub for cross-border trade between Thailand and Myanmar, is now under the control of the Karen National Union.


Reinforcements have been sent by the government to recapture the township, but their advance has been stalled by rebel forces using ambushes and other guerrilla tactics.

More displaced people flee from Myanmar into Thailand | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

Appeal for humanitarian aid for Burmese sheltering in Thailand

The anti-Myanmar junta National Unity Government (NUG) has appealed to all organisations and authorities to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Myanmar fleeing the civil war in their country, to seek temporary refuge in Thailand.


A statement, issued by the Foreign Ministry of the resistance forces yesterday, said that the NUG, its ethnic allies and affiliated groups will cooperate with the Thai government and other related organisations in providing assistance to the displaced people from Myanmar.


The statement accused the Myanmar military of various forms of attacks, including artillery bombardments and air strikes on public buildings and the properties of civilians in and around Myawaddy township, driving thousands of civilians across the border into Thailand’s Mae Sot district of Tak province and surrounding areas.


The number of displaced people entering Thailand is expected to increase in the coming days, as the Myanmar junta has been increasing their indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets, said the statement.


The statement also said the NUG sincerely appreciates the assistance, shelter and other support given to the Burmese civilians by the Thai government, the Thai military and authorities in Tak province.


“This action portrays the Royal Thai government as being a good neighbour and the people of Myanmar will always remember this support and assistance,” said the statement.

Appeal for humanitarian aid for Burmese sheltering in Thailand | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

Thai hospital near Myanmar border treats dozens injured in Kayin fighting

A Thai border hospital received nearly 40 injured people for treatment after a battle between Burmese junta soldiers and rebel forces in Kayin state in neighboring Myanmar, officials in Thailand said Monday.


As the unrest in Myanmar threatens to spill over into neighboring countries, the Thai prime minister, meanwhile, has established a high-level committee to manage the situation, officials in Bangkok said, amid growing concerns about the conflict’s potential impact on Thailand through irregular migration, border clashes, and disrupted trade.


In the Thai border town of Mae Sot, at least 38 people injured in the fighting on the Myanmar side of the frontier were admitted to a local hospital, Public Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew said.


“We treat them according to their conditions, mostly involving surgery,” he said during a news conference at Mae Sot General Hospital on Monday.


Mae Sot, in Tak province, is notable as a trade hub and for its substantial population of Burmese migrants and refugees.


“There were 22 people admitted on Saturday. Another 16 gradually came on Sunday.”


Cholnan declined to disclose how many junta troops and rebel soldiers were included among the injured.


“We do not discriminate which group they are,” he said, adding that foreign nationals would be referred to relevant security agencies following their treatment.


The armed branch of the Karen National Union, called the Karen National Liberation Army, and its allies captured junta Infantry Battalion 275 in Myawaddy, a Burmese town that shares a border with Mae Sot, on April 10.


After rebel forces intercepted a junta convoy and injured over 100 soldiers on its way to recapture Myawaddy on Thursday, Mi-35 helicopters bombed the town in retaliation on Saturday around 3 a.m.


Gunfire between junta troops and rebel forces and airstrikes could be heard late into late Sunday morning, Thai soldiers and Mae Sot residents told Radio Free Asia (RFA), a news organization affiliated with BenarNews.


High-level body formed


Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s new committee, chaired by Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, the deputy prime minister who serves as foreign affairs minister, is tasked with focusing on addressing challenges arising from the conflict across the border, including security, economic and social aspects, according to an order from the PM.


“Currently, the unrest in Myanmar tends to escalate, which may affect Thailand in many dimensions, including security, economy, and society, especially the problem of irregular migration, border clashes and disrupted border trade,” the order stated.


“[T]o ensure that the government’s policy implementation in diplomatic, security, economic and public communication aspects, as well as the management of the Thai-Myanmar border situation, proceeds smoothly and efficiently and achieves the set goals concretely.”

Public Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew was visiting the border region to monitor displaced Myanmar nationals and to encourage personnel at Mae Sot Hospital.


On Monday in Mae Sot, the minister noted that in the past two to three days, 82 people had been treated and many remained hospitalized after suffering injuries during clashes across the Moei river, adding 29 had undergone surgery and three more were waiting.


The Tak Provincial Public Health Office revealed that the total number of people who fled Myanmar and sought medical treatment was 113 – 89 in Mae Sot, 13 in the Umphang district and others elsewhere.


Fighting


Battles between rebel groups and government troops began after the Feb. 1, 2021, Myanmar military coup ousting President Win Myint and State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.


Amid escalating tensions in late March, the Thai government launched the Humanitarian Assistance Corridor project for Myanmar citizens affected by the fighting in their country, delivering 4,000 relief bags containing rice, dried food and other essential supplies for about 20,000 people in Kayin State.


Since then, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the Karen National Union (KNU), and the People’s Defense Force (PDF) announced they had taken control of Myawaddy town on April 11, prompting some Myanmar nationals to cross the border into Thailand to flee the conflict.


The most recent intense fighting began at 3 a.m. Saturday, according to Thai military and local villagers.


Chayaphon Satondee, spokesman for the Thai House Committee on Military Affairs, said his committee prioritizes assisting and protecting Thai citizens residing in combat areas and near the border.


“During this period, we may need to monitor the situation’s progress with relevant agencies, coordinate information to report to the meeting, and may need to call relevant agencies to clarify the situation, operational procedures, and assistance to Thai citizens living near the combat areas,” Chayaphon said.


Meanwhile, since the rebel capture of Battalion 275, about 200 junta troops have been stranded at a customs compound near the border’s Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 2, about 10 km (six miles) north of Mae Sot.


RFA could not confirm if these troops were among those admitted to Mae Sot’s hospital.


Following Saturday’s and Sunday’s battles, about 3,000 people were evacuated and several hundred refugees were taken to Rujira ranch a few kilometers north of Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 2, according to Thai officials.


The evacuees were predominantly Burmese, said Thai soldiers, in addition to some Thai nationals working in Myanmar. Thai authorities provided refugees with food and medical services.


As of Monday, about 2,000 displaced people have returned since fighting calmed in Myawaddy, the Bangkok Post reported on Monday, adding that Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 1, which is used for immigration, remains open.


The newspaper cited a Thai military officer as saying that negotiations between the junta and the Karen rebel force and its allies have begun.

Thai hospital near Myanmar border treats dozens injured in Kayin fighting — BenarNews