Fighting between the Myanmar army and anti-junta rebels has flared in recent days, with locals in one village saying Saturday that more than a dozen people were killed in a single raid.
Deadly violence has engulfed Myanmar since the military deposed Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government in February 2021 and unleashed a bloody crackdown on dissent that has left thousands dead.
The junta has been battling anti-coup “People’s Defence Force” (PDF) militias, as well as long-established ethnic rebel armies that control large areas of territory close to the country’s borders.
A senior military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that fighting had been going on in recent days in the states of Kachin, Karen and Kayah, as well as Sagaing and Magway regions.