AA attacks strategic hilltop camps held by junta in Paletwa Twsp

By Admin 14 Nov 2023

DMG Newsroom
14 November 2023, Paletwa, Chin State

Fierce fighting erupted between the Myanmar military and Arakan Army after the ethnic armed group launched attacks on two of the regime’s strategic hilltop camps near Taronai Village, part of Chin State’s Paletwa Township, on Tuesday.

The AA offensive against the two hilltop positions near Taronai Village began around 6 a.m. on November 14, and junta troops responded with aerial support and shelling, the Three Brotherhood Alliance said in a statement.

Four locals from Taronai Village were reportedly killed and one other was injured in the junta airstrikes and shelling. Paletwa residents said the number of victims could be much higher.

“The junta has been responding to offensives against resistance forces with aerial support. The military’s Paletwa-based Light Infantry Battalion 289 also fired mortar shells,” said a resident of Paletwa. 

Residents of Taronai Village fled to safer locales due to the military’s retaliatory artillery bombardment, and communication lines in the area have been cut.

“The situation in the village is said to be worsening. A mother and her son were killed by the junta airstrikes and shelling into the village. Due to the military’s airstrikes, the damage inside the village could be significant. Mobile phone services have been cut off in the area,” said a local man in Taronai Village. 

Residents in Paletwa remain worried about their safety as the military has blocked off the town’s entry and exit points while firing heavy weapons into Taronai Village.

“The military hasn’t tightened security in downtown Paletwa, but blocked off the entry and exit of the town. We are concerned for our safety because the military’s LIB [Light Infantry Battlion] 289 fired mortar shells,” said a local man in Paletwa.

The AA’s offensive against the two strategic hilltop camps came a day after the ethnic armed group attacked two Border Guard Force outposts near Rathedaung Township’s Cheinkharlein and Donpaik villages in the early hours of November 13.