Mizzima
KNU-led revolutionary forces are on the verge of capturing Myawaddy Town, situated across the Moei River from Mae Sot in Thailand.
The KNU forces have surrounded Junta’s Infantry Battalion (275) base located three miles from the town, and have offered them the option to surrender.
A Myawaddy resident told Mizzima that the junta’s administrative apparatus in Myawaddy is no longer functioning. They said that the town’s police office and government administration offices are no longer fully functional.
Reports from a resident of Myawaddy, in contact with Mizzima, indicate that the junta’s administrative system in the town, including the Town Police Station and departmental offices, is no longer fully operational.
But, they also said that the Myawaddy to Mae Sot Friendship Bridge No. (2) remains open as normal.
The Thai Foreign Minister, Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, earlier this week said that the Myawaddy/Mae Sot border crossing remains open and that goods are still flowing from Mae Sot to Myawaddy
Many Myawaddy residents have also fled to Mae Sot to avoid the fighting. Parnpree said that while there was no “mass evacuation”, people are coming over the border.
He also explained that the Thai authorities would offer temporary shelter to refugees saying: “We have prepared for a while and we can temporarily accommodate about 100,000 people in Thailand’s safe area.”
On 7 April, a plane sent from Yangon by the junta landed at Mae Sot International Airport and repatriated ten individuals, including the Myawaddy Township Administrator, according to a source based in Mae Sot.
