Revolutionary forces in Yebyu Township, Tanintharyi Region, carried out coordinated attacks on two positions held by the military junta on November 24, according to resistance sources.
The attacks targeted junta troops stationed near Ma Yan Chaung village and Rar Hpu village. A member of a local resistance group in Yebyu said the operations were quick, surprise-style assaults.
“We attacked two locations on November 24, one in Ma Yan Chaung and another on the outskirts of Rar Hpu. It was not a direct confrontation. We used hit-and-run tactics that lasted about ten minutes. We don’t yet know the casualties. After the attack, our forces withdrew immediately,” he said.
He added that junta troops continued moving between villages, reinforcing and repositioning their units. “Our goal is to make sure they cannot settle or build a stable base.”
Sources confirmed that the Karen National Union (KNU) Brigade 27 and the New Mon State Party (Anti-Military Dictatorship) forces also took part in the operation.
Although gunfire was reported on November 24, residents said travel along the Yebyu–Kaleinaung road remained normal on November 25.
Heavy clashes previously occurred in July and August when the military junta launched a major operation to retake the Kaleinaung–Malwe Taung section of the Union Highway, which had been under the control of joint resistance forces. The junta regained control of the area in August.
Since then, a column of more than 50 junta soldiers has been moving through villages including Rar Hpu, Kywetalin, Lawt Thaing, Tharyarmun, and Kyauk Ka Din, staying inside vacant houses for days at a time. A resident of Rar Hpu said the troop movements have caused growing fear of renewed clashes.
“Sometimes they come with 50 troops, sometimes nearly 100. They stay in empty houses, about 15 soldiers per house, and remain in each village for about a week. On November 24, they were attacked near Rar Hpu. It’s quiet now, and no one has fled, but the junta troops are still here. They seem to be provoking the resistance, so more fighting could happen anytime,” the resident said.
Junta troops moving between villages are also stopping and questioning passenger vehicles traveling along the road, residents reported.
Villagers from more than six communities who previously fled during the July and August fighting have now returned home, but they say they are living with fear and uncertainty as junta soldiers continue to move inside their villages.
