A major from government armed forces and seven soldiers under his command were killed on Monday following clashes with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) at Dung Waw in Northern Shan State, according to one front line KIA commander.
KIA Lance Corporal Tsin-yu La San and a young civilian was fatally wounded the night before, according to Lt. Zau Seng, a commander with the KIA affiliated militia People’s army. For the last two-days, there has been heavy fighting between a government battalion and the KIA in the area.
The territory of the KIA’s 4th Brigade in northern Shan State includes a stretch between Namtu and Muse slated as the route for twin pipelines that will transport oil and gas from Burma’s Arakan coast to China’s Yunnan province. Fighting has been frequent along this part of the pipeline corridor.
Although representatives of both the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the government have met for a series of talks - most recently in China last week - the fighting has been ongoing since a 17-year ceasefire ended on June 9, 2011.
