KNLA-Tatmadaw fighting traps buses and locals in Mon State

By DMG 03 Feb 2022

DMG Newsroom
3 February 2022, Yangon

Junta forces and Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) troops clashed between Bilin and Thaton towns in Mon State on Thursday afternoon.

During the fighting, passenger vehicles and local residents found themselves pinned down between the two towns.

“So far we heard the sound of gunfire and artillery shelling, and passenger vehicles have been stranded,” a Belin resident told DMG on Thursday evening, as fighting was reported to be ongoing.

“They are still fighting,” said the driver of a Yangon-Myawaddy passenger express bus. “Vehicles and locals are all stranded. Buses and motorbikes coming from Thaton, Hpa-an and Mawlamyine are also stranded. It is not yet known how long the fighting will last.”

The location of Thursday’s fighting is in territory under the control of the KNLA’s Brigade No. 1.

The KNLA is the militant wing of the Karen National Union (KNU). Despite the Karen ethnic armed group being one of the most influential signatories of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, its forces have clashed repeatedly with Myanmar’s military since the February 1, 2021, coup, in both Mon and Karen states.