We didn’t dare go outside at night,’ a parliamentarian said, following the sound of gunfire.
Locals are concerned following the firing of heavy artillery in northern Shan State’s Kyaukme Township on Friday.
Residents said that they heard the sound of both artillery and rifle fire at around 10:00 p.m. near where the Tatmadaw’s Artillery Battalion 352 has been stationed. The location is reportedly in close proximity to a hospital.
“I don’t know which armed organization opened fire. We didn’t dare go outside at night,” Kyaukme parliamentarian Sai Tun Win told SHAN, adding that there is currently no rule of law in the area.
Local sources in Kyaukme said that the Burma Army had opened fire unilaterally from the area. Social media was rife with rumors of different scenarios, including one where a gunman shot at the battalion and fled. SHAN could not confirm the exact chain of events.
Political analyst Huen Yar Yang told SHAN that the escalation of armed conflict in northern Shan State can be attributed to the fact that stakeholders have not solved the country’s political problems by using political means.
As long as some ethnic armed organizations are intentionally unrecognized as dialogue partners and are barred from signing any national ceasefire, military tensions and conflict will continue to rise, he explained.
The military has blocked access to all vehicle roads following a five-point coordinated attack by groups belonging to the Northern Alliance of ethnic armed organizations last Thursday in Pyin Oo Lwin in Mandalay Region and Nawng Khio in northern Shan State. The Goktwin bridge has been damaged, and casualties include soldiers, police, and civilians.
The Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Burma Army reported that the military would take action against armed groups involved in the coordinated attacks—the Ta’ang National Liberation Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Arakan Army.
Analysts and villagers alike speculate that there will be intensified fighting in northern Shan State.
