Brotherhood Alliance claims control over Hsipaw, Shan State; Tensions rise in Chinland following peace talks – DVB

Brotherhood Alliance claims control over Hsipaw, Shan State

The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) told DVB on Wednesday that it is continuing its attack on the military’s Light Infantry Battalions (LIB) 23, 503, and 504, but that it controls all administrative offices in Hsipaw, located in northern Shan State 46 miles (74 km) south of Lashio, which came under the control of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) on Aug. 3. 

“The military conducted retaliatory airstrikes over the residential areas as they lost the town,” Lwe Ye Oo, the TNLA spokesperson, told DVB. The TNLA stated on Tuesday that 14 civilians have been killed and 42 others have been injured due to retaliatory airstrikes and artillery attacks carried out by the military on Hsipaw since Aug. 1. 

Hsipaw is located on a vital trade route that connects Mandalay, Burma’s second largest city, to the border of China. Fighting between the TNLA and military in Hsipaw began on Aug. 10. The TNLA is a member of the Brotherhood Alliance, which includes the MNDAA and the Arakan Army (AA), which has been fighting for control of Arakan State since Nov. 13.

Tensions rise in Chinland following peace talks

The Chinland Defense Force (CDF) Tonzang stated that it has sealed off 18 homes in Tonzang Township, located in northern Chinland. It claims that the owners are top leaders, members, or supporters of the Zomi Revolutionary Army (ZRA), an ethnic armed group active in the area.

“The homes of ZRA troops and their supporters have been sealed off in order to ensure smooth administration and maintain security in the town,” a CDF spokesperson told DVB. The ZRA fought alongside the military to capture two CDF outposts in 2023 and two CDF members were killed.

The CDF and the Chin National Army (CNA/CNF) captured all military outposts in Tonzang on May 20. The ZRA and CNA/CNF held peace talks in India’s Mizoram State on July 27. Both sides agreed to cease hostilities and hold meetings in the future to maintain peace in northern Chinland.

China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi with UN Special Envoy Julie Bishop in Beijing on Aug. 20. (Credit: China MOFA)

Chinese foreign minister meets UN Special Envoy

China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi met with Julie Bishop, the U.N. Special Envoy on Burma, in Beijing on Tuesday. Chinese state media reported that Wang Yi told Bishop that: “China is willing to play a constructive role in helping Myanmar achieve peace and reconciliation.”

It added that Beijing was safeguarding Burma’s “independence, sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity.” This echoes similar remarks made during a meeting between Wang Yi and Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyidaw on Aug. 14. Bishop reportedly said that she supports working with both China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to solve Burma’s crisis.

Bishop was appointed to the role of U.N. Special Envoy by Secretary-General António Guterres in April. Her predecessor Noeleen Heyzer left the post after 20 months in June 2023. Heyzer discussed Burma’s crisis, which has unfolded since the 2021 military coup, with China’s then-Minister of Foreign Affairs Qin Gang in May 2023. 

News by Region

CHINLAND—The Zotung Federal Council is operating nearly 50 schools with around 4,700 students in Rezua town. At least 360 teachers are employed at the schools. Rezua was occupied by Chin resistance forces in November 2023, and the council took over its administration. Telecommunications have been cut off to the town. 

“This area has become a liberated zone, providing more freedom and comfort compared to previous years. This has made it easier to open schools and run educational programs,” a spokesperson for the council told DVB. The Zotung Federal Council was established as a civilian-run administration of the Chin Zotung nationality in central and southern Chinland in 2022.

MANDALAY—The Natogyi People’s Defense Force (PDF) claimed control of the Tada-U Air Defense Force base in Tada-U Township, 13 miles (21 km) from Mandalay International Airport, on Tuesday. The PDF told DVB that there was no fight with the military over control of the base and that it seized all weapons left behind.

“We heard that there were around 20 military personnel [inside the base] but all of them had fled [before our arrival],” a PDF spokesperson told DVB. The PDF has told residents not to use roads in the townships until the offensive is completed.

Two civilians were killed and at least five people, including a Buddhist monk, were injured by airstrikes in Kunohm village of Natogyi Township on Tuesday. “Displaced people are sheltering at the monastery. The aircraft dropped two bombs and fired several rounds of shots, killing two civilians instantly,” said a PDF spokesperson.  

Homes and religious buildings inside the monastery’s compound were destroyed, according to residents. Most had already fled Kunohm village during fighting with the military, which began when the PDF launched an offensive called “Myingyan District Special Operation” in Natogyi, Myingyan and Taungtha townships, in southern Mandalay Region, on Aug. 10.

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