Chinland Defence Force (CDF) and the Chin National Army (CDA) launched an attack on the Myanmar Army base camp on Friday morning at the Lungler Village near the Indo-Burma border, opposite of the Thingsai village in Mizoram. Chin National Army is the armed wing of the Chin National Front, an insurgent group based in Myanmar, while Chinland Defence Force is another group fighting against the military rulers of the country.
According to reports, 150 CNA militants were accompanied by 150 CDA men who attacked the Myanmar Army base at Lungler which is located just opposite of the Thingsai village in Mizoram. The militants launched a surprise attack on the junta soldiers when the soldiers were conducting inspections in the Thantlang town at around 1 pm. Two Myanmar army soldiers were killed in this attack.
“They would come to every house and inspect people’s phones and their household registration. We attacked them because they have been harassing the people,” a spokesperson for the CDF said.
The militants left the spot immediately after the attack, and the army responded by indiscriminately firing heavy artillery and guns into the town, the CDF spokesperson said. The military council of Myanmar which controls the Myanmar army dispatched helicopters and two jet fighters launching an airstrike in response.
The locals of the Thingsai village in Mizoram saw the assault in the sky and heard the explosions and the sounds of the gun battles. Reportedly 100 men fled to the Thingsai village. Also, a source of the CNA told TOI, “Fifteen people were on the other side of the Tiau river waiting to cross”.
Earlier on Thursday, at least 20 people died in clashes between militias and the military in Myin Thar village. Locals said that the military used heavy artillery, and burned down houses.
Fresh clashes with the military started after the shadow National Unity Government (NUG) announced the start of a “people’s resistance war” against the junta on September 7. In Chin State, fighting has since broken out in Hakha, Thantlang and Mindat regions.
The insurgent groups in Myanmar have utilized the difficult terrain of the 1800km of Indo-Burma border to protect themselves. The joint operations carried out by the Indian Army and the Myanmar Army, had been successful in suppressing the insurgents. Last year, Myanmar handed over 22 militants to India in a successful operation led by National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval. However, Myanmar descended into a political crisis following the coup and removal of the Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and the protests that ensued later along with the rise of rebel groups.
