Four soldiers ‘killed’ in Mon State during election phase two
The Ramonnya Mon Army (RMA) stated on Monday that it killed at least four regime troops during an attack on five regime outposts in Mudon and Ye townships of Mon State during the second round of voting in the regime’s 2025-26 elections on Jan. 11. The two towns are located 16-95 miles (25-152 km) south of the Mon State capital Mawlamyine.
Kaung Star, the RMA spokesperson, told DVB that his forces only attacked military targets. The Union Election Commission (UEC) held polls in Mudon, Ye, Bilin, Thanphyuzayet, and Paung townships on Jan. 11, after the first round of voting was held in Mawlamyine, Kyaikto, Chaungzon, Kyaikmaraw and Thaton on Dec. 28. The elections have been completed in all 10 Mon townships.
The Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) attacked a regime administration office and outpost in Theizayet town of Kyaikto Township, 87 miles (140 km) north of Mawlamyine, on Dec. 28. The Mon National Liberation Army – Anti-Dictatorship (MNLA-AD) and the Mon Liberation Army (MLA) merged to form the RMA in May 2025. A third and final round of voting will take place in 63 townships on Jan. 25. Read more
Myanmar’s UN Ambassador rejects military election results
Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun, Burma’s Permanent Representative to the U.N., urged citizens and those living in the diaspora to reject the results of the regime’s “sham” elections in New York City on Saturday – one day before the second phase of voting in Burma began in 100 townships on Sunday.
“No matter how they conduct this fake, fraudulent election, our revolution to end military dictatorship will continue,” Kyaw Moe Tun said at a film screening of “The Beggar’s Election,” directed by pro-democracy activist and comedian Sein Thee. The film is a satirical look at military-run elections in Burma, which have taken place in 1981, 1985, 1990, and in 2012 by-elections, which led to Aung San Suu Kyi’s entry into government.
The military-proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which governed Burma from 2010-15, won 88 of 96 seats in the Pyithu Hluttaw, or lower house, and 21 of 31 seats in the Amyotha Hluttaw, or upper house, in the first phase of voting on Dec. 28. The USDP lost the previous two elections in 2015 and 2020 to the National League for Democracy (NLD) party, which was overturned by the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.
Rohingya genocide case opens at UN’s top court ICJ
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) began hearings on Monday into The Gambia v. Myanmar, also known as the Rohingya genocide case, which will conclude on Jan. 29. It will be the first genocide case the ICJ will hear in over a decade. In 2019, Gambia filed a case before the ICJ alleging that Burma’s atrocities against the Rohingya violate the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
“The case is likely to set critical precedents for how genocide is defined and how it can be proven, and how violations can be remedied,” Nicholas Koumjian, head of the U.N.’s Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), told Reuters. The ICJ has declared that both Gambia and Burma will file their arguments and provide evidence, adding that the hearings will take place behind closed doors.
In 2019 preliminary hearings at the ICJ, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi rejected Gambia’s accusations of genocide as “incomplete and misleading”. The hearings at the ICJ will mark the first time that Rohingya victims of the alleged atrocities will be heard by an international court although those sessions will be closed to the public and the media for sensitivity and privacy reasons. Read more
News by Region
MAGWAY—Regime media reported on Monday that the military recovered the body of one “terrorist” in Salin Township after Nwetame village was recaptured from resistance forces on Jan. 10. Salin is located 46 miles (74 km) northwest of the region’s capital Magway.
A resident of Nwetame village in Sinphyukyun town told DVB on the condition of anonymity that regime administrators were unable to order residents to cast their ballots during the second round of voting due to fighting between the military and the People’s Defence Force (PDF) on Jan. 11.
MANDALAY—The PDF in Singu Township told DVB that homes belonging to family members of those in the resistance have been sealed and their belongings have been stolen by regime forces after it recaptured the town on Dec. 18. Singu, located 58 miles (93 km) north of Mandalay, was seized by the PDF in July 2024.
A PDF member told DVB on the condition of anonymity that in some instances these homes were burned down. The PDF stated on Jan. 4 that it has temporarily withdrawn from Singu, Thabeikkyin and Madaya townships due to the “excessive force” used by the military in its counteroffensive.
SAGAING—Cargo truck drivers told DVB that regime forces shut down a bypass road connecting Shwebo and Sagaing townships on Sunday after four regime police officers were allegedly killed by the PDF on Jan. 10. Shwebo is located 58 miles (93 km) northeast of the region’s capital Monywa.
One cargo truck driver told DVB that regime police officers are demanding drivers pay up to two million MMK ($520 USD) across 12 police checkpoints on the 54 mile (86 km) long road connecting Shwebo to Sagaing town, which is located 68 miles (109 km) east of Monywa.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 3,910 MMK)
Read our latest op-ed: As junta holds polls in Demoso, Karenni resistance builds government. Find DVB English News on X, FB, IG, Threads, TikTok & YouTube.
