On November 20th, personnel from two bases of Military Council and the township police station stationed in the town of N Jang Yang, Myitkyina District, Kachin State, withdrew from their respective posts, according to locals.
Military Council soldiers and militia members were deployed collaboratively in two bases at the entrance of N Jang Yang town and the Zwutmaiyang area. The combined force exceeds 110 individuals, and there are at least 10 policemen stationed at the town police station, according to local estimates.
A resident of N Jang Yang informed MNJ that starting from November 19th, he observed activities involving the relocation of items at military bases and police stations. Subsequently, all personnel withdrew the following day.
"They all left. The military bases and the police station were pulled out. The police moved according to their own plan”, he said.
The Military Council had stationed troops in N Jang Yang for approximately two years, primarily from the 140th Battalion based in Mohnyin. According to residents, militia members later joined the forces at these bases, making it difficult to determine their exact numbers.
As of 7:00 AM on November 21st, the personnel who left N Jang Yang are currently located at the nearby Gwayhtaw military outpost, and their destination remains unknown.
The decision by the Military Council to withdraw troops from N Jang Yang might be attributed to logistical challenges in transporting food and the difficult conditions involved in troop rotation, the aforementioned source suggested.
"When the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) established a significant base along their primary supply route, the transportation of food became challenging for them. Wandering outside their bases is not a simple task, and it appears that the issue of food supply has grown significantly for them”, he said.
There are also widespread speculations that the Military Council troops might have negotiated with KIA in advance of their permanent departure from N Jang Yang, aiming to prevent KIA's interceptions and ambushes, which could explain why KIA allowed their peaceful departure without attacking, even though the entire battalion was on the move.
MNJ attempted to reach out to KIA spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu regarding these speculations, but there was no response to the phone call.
