Fighting between the military junta and allied resistance forces, including Mon and Karen armed groups, continued as of the morning of April 29 in Kawkareik and Kyondoe townships, Karen State. Even in villages not currently experiencing active conflict, the junta has been conducting near-daily aerial surveillance, according to local residents.
Resistance forces under the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and its allied units have control over key routes, including the Kawkareik-Kyondoe highway and parts of the Asia Highway toward Myawaddy. Clashes with junta forces, who remain positioned within the towns, have persisted due to ongoing offensive operations.
Despite no active fighting in some rural areas, residents report that drones, fighter jets, and bombers continue to patrol overhead daily. Locals remaining in these villages say they are forced to listen for aircraft sounds constantly and hide in sturdy buildings for safety.
A resident from Kanni village stated, “Both resistance fighters and junta troops are present in our area. The aircraft come almost every day. People who fled haven’t dared to return. Just the other day, a bomb exploded and seriously injured someone, he lost a leg.”
The aerial surveillance and bombing are reportedly a daily occurrence. If fighting breaks out, the junta often responds with airstrikes, said residents.
On April 26, a bomb dropped by a drone exploded in Kanni village, injuring a man in his 50s and destroying a residential home, sources confirmed.
Due to ongoing military activity, residents from several villages Kanni, Auk Bote, Kanmayaik, Yinkwe Taung, Ye Lukone, and Koetaing have fled to safer areas and have not returned home.
“More and more people are fleeing. On April 28, three or four more vehicles arrived. The situation is far from stable, and it’s not safe for anyone to return yet,” the resident added.
Roughly 1,500 internally displaced people are now sheltering in monasteries, as well as in Mawlamyine and Hpa-An towns.
In over a week of aerial and drone strikes by the junta, six civilians have been killed and at least 22 others injured, according to local sources. Multiple buildings, including homes, monasteries, and shops, have also been destroyed.
The attacks come despite the junta’s supposed unilateral ceasefire announcement. On April 27, the Karen National Union (KNU) stated that more than 110 human rights violations including airstrikes had been committed by the junta in KNU-controlled areas since the ceasefire was declared.
Fighting in Kyondoe involves joint forces from the People’s Defense Force (PDF), New Mon State Party – Anti-Military Dictatorship (NMSP – AD), and the Mon Liberation Army (MLA), who are coordinating attacks against the junta alongside the KNLA.
