Ethnic rebels in western Myanmar claim to have seized a strategic town on the route to India, dealing a blow to the military regime.
A key town on the way to India from Myanmar has fallen into the hands of ethnic rebels who are fighting against the military regime.
The Arakan Army (AA), one of the three groups that formed the Brotherhood Alliance and launched a coordinated offensive against the junta in October, claims to have seized Paletwa, a town in Chin State near the borders with India and Bangladesh.
The AA said on its Telegram channel that it had cleared all the camps of the military council, also known as the Tatmadaw, in the entire area of Paletwa.
The Tatmadaw has not issued any statement or confirmation about the situation in Paletwa.
The capture of Paletwa by the AA is likely to raise concerns in India, which has been investing in a major infrastructure project in the region to enhance connectivity and trade. The project involves building a road from the Indian state of Mizoram to the port of Sittwe in Rakhine State, via Paletwa and the Kaladan River.
The AA is among the most recent and well-armed of the numerous ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) in Myanmar, and has been engaged in a fierce conflict with the Tatmadaw in Rakhine State and parts of Chin State for several years. The AA had made considerable territorial gains in Rakhine State before the Tatmadaw staged a coup in February 2021, overthrowing the elected civilian government. The AA had declared that it controlled 60% of Rakhine State in 2019.
The AA and the Tatmadaw had agreed to a ceasefire in 2021, which allowed the Tatmadaw to focus on suppressing the widespread protests and resistance to the coup. However, the ceasefire was broken in October, when the AA joined forces with the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) to form the Brotherhood Alliance and resume attacks on the Tatmadaw across the country.
The Brotherhood Alliance has inflicted heavy losses and casualties on the Tatmadaw along the border with China in the past 11 weeks, capturing several strategic locations and towns before a ceasefire was achieved in that area.
On the opposite side of the country, the AA achieved another victory on Saturday, when it took over the last remaining Tatmadaw post in Paletwa township, the Meewa hilltop base, which it had failed to capture in 2020 after 42 days of intense fighting.
The AA now has full control over the port of Paletwa on the Kaladan River, as well as the road and water transportation to the Indian border. This gives the AA a strong logistical advantage to launch further attacks in Rakhine State.
The Tatmadaw faces the risk of losing more towns in Rakhine State to the AA, which would severely undermine its authority and legitimacy. The Tatmadaw is reportedly using airstrikes and helicopter gunships to prevent the AA from advancing to Kyauktaw, a town that lies on the main road connecting Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine State, with the rest of Myanmar.
The AA’s next move is uncertain. It may want to consolidate its position and avoid further casualties. The AA’s stated objective is to achieve some degree of independence or autonomy within a federal system, which it believes is more attainable under a democratic government than under the military dictatorship.
The bigger challenge now for the junta, after losing Paletwa, is to restore the morale and motivation of its soldiers, who are facing opposition from multiple fronts.
