Flash floods in Yangon with more rain expected nationwide
Flash floods hit Yangon’s South Okkalapa, North Okkalapa, Dagon Myothit, and other townships located along the Nga Moe Yeik creek, on Sunday. Several markets in these townships closed down on Oct. 18 due to the rising water level caused by heavy rainfall.
“There have been lightning strikes and heavy winds since early Friday morning. The electricity went off for a whole day,” a Yangon resident told DVB. The regime’s Department of Meteorology and Hydrology predicted on Monday that a tropical depression in the Bay of Bengal may strengthen into a cyclonic storm by Wednesday.
It’s expected to bring more heavy rains, as well as strong waves along Burma’s coast. Regime media reported that at least 520 people have been killed, or have gone missing, since the remnants of Typhoon Yagi arrived in Burma on Sept. 9. The National Unity Government (NUG) stated that more than 600 people are either dead or missing post-Typhoon Yagi.
Five civilians killed by airstrikes in northern Arakan State
At least five civilians were killed and 13 others, including a pregnant woman, were seriously injured during airstrikes conducted by the Burma Air Force on Hpawutchaung village in northern Maungdaw Township, located in northern Arakan State near the Burma-Bangladesh border, on Monday.
“A fighter jet dropped bombs at about 1:44 a.m. while people were asleep,” a Hpawutchaung village resident told DVB. An unknown number of homes and vehicles were destroyed. Residents of Hpawutchaung fled to nearby villages in anticipation of more airstrikes.
A rescue worker in Maungdaw accused the military of deliberately targeting civilians. It has been carrying out retaliatory airstrikes against the Arakan Army (AA) since June 16 when resistance forces launched an attack on Maungdaw after neighboring Buthidaung came under its control on May 18. The AA launched its offensive in Arakan on Nov. 13, 2023.
Four Russian warships arrive at Myanmar port
Four naval ships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet docked at Yangon’s Thilawa Port on Sunday ahead of the second Myanmar-Russia Maritime Security Exercise (MARUMEX) planned for this week. Regime media reported that the Russian military delegation, led by Captain Alexey Antsiferov, was greeted by senior Burma Navy officials.
The first MARUMEX was held off the coast of the country’s southeastern Tanintharyi Region, in the Andaman Sea, on Nov. 7-9, 2023. Min Aung Hlaing met with the then Russian Navy Chief Nikolai Yevmenov during the exercises. Naypyidaw and Moscow have established increasingly close relations since the 2021 military coup. Min Aung Hlaing visited Russia and met with President Vladimir Putin in 2022.
News by Region
BAGO—A resistance group calling itself the Brave Warriors for Myanmar claimed that four military personnel were killed and eight others, including two officers, were injured when it fired three rockets at an Air Force base in Taungoo, located around 72 miles (116 km) south of the capital Naypyidaw, on Sunday.
“They [military] returned fire with three rounds of artillery shells and several rounds with small arms,” a spokesperson of the group told DVB. It claimed that a car garage, an aircraft hangar and two aircraft were damaged in the attack. The group attacked the Southern Regional Military Command (RMC) headquarters in Taungoo on Oct. 5.
CHINLAND—The Chin Brotherhood told DVB that the military is conducting an offensive in Thantlang Township, which is located around 23 miles (37 km) northwest of the Chinland capital Hakha, in order to recapture its outposts seized by the Chin National Army (CNA) on Oct. 15-16.
“I think the CNA is withdrawing some of its forces from the town as it suffered heavy casualties. The military doesn’t want to lose Thantlang which is close to Hakha, so they are using a lot of manpower in order to recapture territory,” Salai Yaw Mang, the Chin Brotherhood spokesperson, told DVB. The CNA launched an offensive against the military in Thantlang on July 22.
KARENNI—The regime plans to reopen universities and schools in the Karenni State capital Loikaw, located 134 miles (215 km) east of Naypyidaw, in November. Loikaw residents told DVB that teachers are being forced to return to their jobs.
“No students will attend due to the unstable situation in the town. They [military] are also trying to operate government offices,” a Loikaw resident told DVB. Karenni resistance forces launched an offensive to seize Loikaw on Nov. 11, 2023. But the military was able to regain control in June.
MANDALAY—China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian condemned an attack on its consulate in Chanmyathazi Township on Monday. He urged regime officials to make every effort to conduct a thorough investigation and to arrest the perpetrators, who carried out the attack on Friday.
The NUG Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack and a Mandalay People’s Defense Force (PDF) spokesperson told DVB that it was not responsible. Min Aung Hlaing will reportedly visit China next month. Read more here.
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