Myanmar: Rebel groups launch attacks against military junta

Three ethnic rebel groups in Myanmar on Friday (Oct 27) launched coordinated attacks against the military across the country's north, posing a fresh challenge to the junta as it struggles to quell resistance to its rule.

In a statement, the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Arakan Army (AA) and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) said that they launched a military operation. 

It was not yet known how many casualties were there or whether the rebel groups had taken territory. Pro-military channels on Telegram said that the rebels were attacking 12 towns or settlements across a swathe of Shan state around 100 kilometres across.

According to a report by the news agency AFP, the MNDAA said that its fighters closed the roads from Lashio to Chinshwehaw and Muse on the China border ahead of a "major offensive".

Citing local media and residents, the report said that fighting around Lashio and near Muse, Chinshwehaw and Laukkai was ongoing. A Muse resident told AFP that locals were staying indoors as soldiers patrolled the streets and that the road from the town to the city of Mandalay -- a major trade route -- had been closed.

Meanwhile, a rescue worker in Lashio, who chose to remain anonymous, said that rebels had begun shelling the military base near the town from early Thursday and that the military responded with artillery fire.

An airline ticketing agency told AFP that all flights to and from Lashio airport had been cancelled on Friday. 

China's foreign ministry said it was "closely following" the fighting and called on all sides to prevent the situation from escalating.

Myanmar's borderlands are home to more than a dozen ethnic rebel groups. Some of them have trained and equipped newer "People's Defence Forces" that have sprung up since the 2021 coup. 

AFP reported that earlier in October, nearly 30 people were killed and dozens were injured in a military strike on a camp for displaced people in neighbouring Kachin state.

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a rebel group which controls the area, said that the junta was responsible for the attack. 

Weeks later, the junta ordered air strikes and troop reinforcements as it tried to recover outposts it had lost in subsequent fighting with the KIAs. 

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