Clashes erupted between junta troops and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) in the Hoya Village Tract of Mongyai Township in Shan State.
At around 2:30 pm on July 7, junta troops stationed on Lwehotone Hill near Hoya began fighting with MNDAA, with the clashes lasting until around 7:00 pm. During the conflict, the junta forces indiscriminately fired artillery, damaging some residential houses.
“Today's battle in Hoya was intense. Junta soldiers stationed on Lwehotone Hill fired artillery at Wanlong and Pangnyawng villages, resulting in at least two houses being burned. Several other houses were also struck by artillery shells and shrapnel. Junta battalions based in Mongyai also provided artillery support for their troops in the combat zone”, a Mongyai resident reported.
The junta camp on Lwehotone Hill, where a portion of troops from the 67th Infantry Battalion, typically stationed along the Hoya-Tangyan Road, had been relocated and deployed, came under drone attack by the MNDAA around midday on July 8, after which the artillery fire abruptly ceased, locals said.
“Lwehotone Hill is the highest ground around here. The junta troops continued to fire artillery from there, but I think they were all killed after MNDAA attacked using drones. The artillery booms also stopped”, a local source reported to Shan Herald.
Currently, the junta's Mantan base in Tangyan is targeting Lashio Town with artillery bombardments. Junta troops from Hsipaw (Thibaw) and Kholam sides are also mobilizing to reinforce Mongyai, escalating military tensions with MNDAA.
Approximately 800 residents from Hoya, Wanlong, and Pangnyawng villages have evacuated their homes temporarily, seeking refuge in what appear to be safe locations amidst the looming threat of imminent conflict.
On July 4, arbitrary shelling by the 67th Infantry Battalion, deployed along the Hoya-Tangyan Road, struck the high school, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) office in Hoya Village Tract, and the food court in Wanlong Village.
