Thousands of residents who fled their homes during resistance attacks on the military council’s police station and battalions in Leiktho town center in Thandaunggyi Township, Taungoo District, Karen State, remain displaced, according to displaced locals.
As it is difficult to keep track of the scattered Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), the exact number is not known. However, according to the 2014 Census, there were over 3,000 people living in Leiktho alone.
A resident of Leiktho said: “People have fled in fear. We have heard that the resistance side is planning more attacks. Around 11 February, some people started fleeing to villages in two Hijets, and on four, five or six Hijet motorcycles. Some have gone to seek shelter in Taungoo and Mya Thar Kone areas. People are fleeing because they fear that the fighting will flare up again.”
Fighting broke out in the Leiktho area in early February. Later, the junta carried out artillery shelling. This sparked fears among the population that the fighting could flare up again, forcing thousands of residents from Leiktho and surrounding villages to flee to safety, according to residents.
During the fighting in Leiktho, several houses were damaged or destroyed by artillery shelling. Currently, the military junta has reinforced its troops and they are stationed in the Leiktho-based Light Infantry Battalion 603, from where they are conducting artillery shelling, according to resistance sources.
“The situation in Leiktho has not calmed down yet. People have fled from the artillery shelling. It is difficult to estimate the number of IDPs. Their (the military junta) side has suffered heavy casualties in the fighting. They won’t come out but continue to shell with artillery from inside the LIB 603,” said the spokesperson of the Northern Thandaung Defense Force (NTDF), which took part in the fighting.
On 1 and 2 February, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), NTDF and joint resistance forces launched attacks on the LIB 603 and township police station in Leiktho and the military council outpost in Mong Lun (Lower) village, and burned down the outpost in Mong Lun.
According to a statement by the Karen National Union (KNU), between February 2021 and December 2023, more than 20,000 people were displaced due to instability and armed clashes in the KNU’s Brigade 2 territory in Taungoo District. The number of IDPs has further increased in February this year due to clashes in Leiktho and HtantabinTownship.
Sent by KIC.