Updated July 3, 2024, 3:21 p.m. ET
Shelling during a clash in northern Myanmar killed seven civilians on Wednesday, including three children, residents told Radio Free Asia, as fighting between junta troops and ethnic minority insurgents escalated following the breakdown of a ceasefire.
Forces allied with the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA, began an offensive in Lashio township on Wednesday morning, residents told RFA.
Lashio is an administrative center and the home of the military junta's Northeastern Military Command's headquarters. It also sits at the junction of a highway that connects mainland Myanmar with the Chinese border.
Both sides fired heavy weapons into the township, and shells hit homes in one neighborhood.
RELATED STORIES
[ Junta troops destroy roads in northern Myanmar as renewed fighting loomsOpens in new window ]
[ China awaits junta approval to resume border trade with Myanmar's Shan stateOpens in new window ]
[ Talks between Myanmar rebel alliance and junta focus on Chinese interestsOpens in new window ]
One shell killed a family of six in their house, said a resident, who declined to be identified in fear of reprisals.
“It happened while they were eating in the kitchen. The dead bodies have been sent to the morgue,” he said. “We’ve heard the sound of heavy guns firing all morning but I’m not sure if the junta army or the revolutionary group was responsible.”
Those killed were Zel Zaung, 14, Dwel Aung and Zel Nwel, both 15, Sai Khon and May Yi, both 30, and Mar Gyi, 70.
A shell hit another Lashio house early in the day, killing a woman and wounding two men, residents said. RFA could not confirm their identities.
Residents added that flights have been suspended indefinitely, and all roads have been blocked.
Insurgent fighters and their junta army rivals blamed each other for the civilian deaths.
Fighting between Lashio-based junta soldiers and the autonomy-seeking rebels resumed on June 25 after the collapse of a ceasefire brokered by Chinese officials in a series of meetings that began in January.
The Ta'ang National Liberation Army, an ally of the MNDAA, announced the capture of 26 junta camps in the days following the end of the ceasefire
RFA attempted to contact MNDAA spokesperson Li Kyarwen and called Shan state’s junta spokesperson Khun Thein Maung for more information on the attacks but calls went unanswered.
Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan, Mike Firn and Matt Reed.
This story has been updated to correct that MNDAA fighters were involved in the clashes.