Senior regime official attends ASEAN meeting in Laos
Naypyidaw’s Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Aung Kyaw Moe is attending the 57th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Vientiane, Laos from July 24-28. He met with Kao Kim Hourn, the ASEAN Secretary General, on Wednesday.
“Both sides discussed [the] ongoing work of ASEAN pertaining to its community building efforts,” stated ASEAN in a press release on July 24. ASEAN barred senior regime officials from attending its high level meetings in August 2022 over Naypyidaw’s failure to adhere to its Five-Point Consensus, which called for an immediate end to all violence and dialogue among parties to the conflict.
ASEAN invited a non-political representative from Burma to attend its summits but the invitation was snubbed by Naypyidaw. It started sending non-political representatives to ASEAN meetings since Laos took over as chair earlier this year.
Around 41,000 displaced due to fighting since June
The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) has documented that around 41,000 residents of northern Shan State have fled to southern Shan and Mandalay Region since fighting between the Brotherhood Alliance and the military resumed on June 25.
It added that thousands have fled Lashio and fighting continues in Hsipaw, Kyaukme, Lashio and Nawnghkio townships of northern Shan. Airstrikes and artillery attacks have caused civilian casualties and destroyed homes. The number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) has surpassed three million, according to UNOCHA.
Over 300 military personnel surrender in Lashio
The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) stated on Tuesday that a total of 317 military personnel, including a lieutenant colonel and several majors, surrendered in Lashio. It claimed that all of them vowed to turn their weapons against the military regime.
The MNDAA guaranteed the safety of all who surrendered and provided them with medical treatment. On July 14, the MNDAA declared that it would provide cash rewards from one million to one billion kyat, depending on the rank of the soldier and the weapon turned over.
A temporary ceasefire with the military was declared by the MNDAA at Beijing’s request. It will end on July 31. Fighting has not stopped since the ceasefire began on July 14. The Brotherhood Alliance, which includes the MNDAA, resumed its Operation 1027 in northern Shan State on June 25 after a China-brokered ceasefire – signed on Jan. 11 – broke down.
News by Region
AYEYARWADY—More than 100 homes were sealed by the military in Ayeyarwady Region between January to June. “The regime’s administration sealed them off for allegedly having connections with illegal groups,” said a source close to the military.
Most of the homes are reported to belong to civilians, education workers, and members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party. Most homes were reported to belong to individuals charged with either treason, sedition, or under the Counter-Terrorism Law or the Unlawful Association Act.
KACHIN—Hkalam Samson, the former chairperson of the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC), was released from regime detention, where he’s been held over the last three months, on Monday.
Samson was serving a six-year prison sentence but freed during a regime amnesty on April 17. He was re-arrested at his home in Myitkyina, Kachin State later that same day. Read more here.
SAGAING—The military burned down over 30 homes in Mingun and Shaungsha villages of Sagaing Township on Tuesday. “They set fire to four areas in total, destroying some shops and stores as well,” said a Sagaing resident.
Many residents claimed that the arson attack was conducted in retaliation. Two military personnel were killed by resistance forces near Mingun village earlier on July 23.
MON—Six people were killed and 12 others were injured due to an artillery attack on a village in Kyaikto Township on Tuesday. “There was a clash between the Burma Army and a resistance group. It seems like they are targeting villages,” a Kyaikto resident told DVB.
SHAN—Four civilians have been injured due to fighting between the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) and Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) in Lawksawk (Yaksawk) Township since July 22, the Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN) reported.
“They arrived along Yarthit village and shot at each other,” a Lawksawk resident told SHAN. The fighting reportedly happened in three areas of the township and both sides used drones to attack each other, according to residents. The two Shan armed groups signed a ceasefire on Nov. 29, 2023.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,980 kyat)
