The Karenni Interim Executive Council (IEC), a provisional government established by resistance forces in 2023, has restricted movement in Bawlakhe Township and urged residents of Mawchi town to dig trenches as the regime intensifies its counteroffensive to retake territory lost to resistance forces in Karenni State.
“There have been no battles in Mawchi yet. But we have heard battle reports from Bawlakhe. [The resistance forces] told us to stay alert,” a Mawchi resident told DVB on the condition of anonymity.
Bawlakhe and Mawchi are located 52-93 miles (83-150 km) south of the Karenni State capital Loikaw. The IEC claims that over 80 percent of Karenni, which historically includes parts of southern Shan State, is under its control.
Since then, five civilians have been killed and 11 have been injured by air, drone and artillery strikes in Moebye and Pekon Township of southern Shan, as well as Loikaw and Demoso townships in Karenni, according to the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF).
The pro-regime Pa-O National Organization (PNO) has reportedly fought alongside the military in southern Shan since January.
“They’re trying to regain control of Demoso, Moebye and areas surrounding Loikaw,” a frontline source in southern Shan told DVB. Moebye is located 11 miles (17 km) north of Loikaw and 100 miles (160 km) south of the Shan State capital Taunggyi.
Retaliatory airstrikes and the deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), or drones, by the regime has led to an undisclosed number of casualties on both sides, the source added. The Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 422 in Moebye has provided artillery support to regime forces.
Karenni resistance forces claim full control over six towns in Karenni, including Mese on the Myanmar-Thailand border and Moebye in southern Shan, since it launched Operation 1111 against the military on Nov. 11, 2023. Loikaw, Bawlakhe and Hpasawng are still under regime control.
