Lashio City Beseiged by the Ethnic Armies

   (Based on the staff article from the MYANMAR NOW on 15 November 2023)

Lashio City, the capital of Shan-North, has been cut off from the Proper Burma and overwhemingly surrounded by the armies of Northern Alliance. The North Eastern Divisional Command (Ya-Ma-Kha) of Myanmar Army will be the first divisional command seriously threatened by the ethnic rebels in the Modern history of Burma.

The UNION HIGHWAY is now totally blocked at the south of Lashio since Northern Alliance’s TNLA has occupied the major towns of Naung-Cho, Kyauk-Mel, and Thibaw. And the Northen Alliance’s MNDAA has taken over the towns of Tar-Moe-Nye, Kun-Lone, and Chin-Shwe-Haw thus blocking the northern access to Lashio.

The only way in and out of Lashio is the Taunggyi-Lashio Highway as the Lashio Airport is now restricted for Miitary Airplanes only. The trains have been stopped since the Operation 1027 started in October-27.

The Battle for Lashio City: Drones and Artillery

Both China-made suicide drones and spy drones are now flying all over Lashio and looking for targets and collecting intelligence. The troops defending Ya-Ma-Kha is also responding to the drone threats by aimlessly shooting their big guns all over the surrounding ares of Lashio and killing many civilians.

Lashio heavily relies on Burmese goods coming up from South and Chinese goods coming down from the North. All the commodity prices are now rising up multiple times as both South and North access roads are now blocked and local residents are facing starvation as markets and shops are suddenly shut by the worsening security situation.

Expecting no possible reinforcements the demoralized city garrison is expected to fall quickly as soon as the Northen Alliance armies launch their expected attack on the City. Then the Ya-Ma-Kha Command will be the first ever divisional command to be fallen out of fourteen divisional commands of Myanmar Army in the Modern history of Burma.