Explosions were reported by the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) at the regime Artillery Battalion 354 during fighting with the military near Taunghkam village in Nawnghkio Township of northern Shan State on Tuesday. Nawnghkio is located 96 miles (154 km) south of the regional capital Lashio.
“We heard continuous explosions, but we don’t know whether they were from an ammunition depot or an armory. We suspect that artillery shells directly hit the site. There was also artillery support from Pyin Oo Lwin [Mandalay Region],” a TNLA source told DVB. Taunghkam is a strategic village 55 miles (88 km) east of Pyin Oo Lwin in neighbouring Mandalay Region, where the military’s Defence Services Academy (DSA) and several bases are located.
Videos of the explosions inside the regime Artillery Battalion 354 have surfaced on social media, but no independent verification has been made beyond confirmation from anonymous TNLA sources. The Artillery Operations Command (AOC) 902 oversees three artillery battalions: 354, 206 and 406 in Taunghkam. Fighting between the military and the TNLA over control of the bases in northern Shan began last October.
