(Based on staff post from the MYANMAR NOWMEDIA on 25 February 2025.)
In the early morning of one day in January 2025,
more than twenty lightly-armed Burmese PDF youths in camo-uniforms and carrying
some 107mm shock rockets were trekking through the heavy jungle on the border
of Chin State and Magway Division inside Myanmar.
Each shock rocket weighing nearly 20 kgs and the PDF
youths alternatively carrying each of the eight heavy rockets were on a secret
mission targeting the DI-21 (Ka-pa-sa 21) compound at thirty miles from
Seik-phyu Town in the District of Pa-khoke-ku of Magway Division.
From their base camp inside Magway Division, they had to travel nearly fifteen days first by boats, then by cars, and last on foot to reach their target of DI-21. On January-18 they reached their target and later launched a deadly barrage of shock rockets into the factory compound.
The factory was DI-21 which manufactures 500lb drop
bombs for Myanmar Air Force and the attacking group of Burmese youths were the
members of People Defense Froce (PDF). One of the youths was 33-yrs-old
Nagar-Gyi (Big-Dragon) who was a traditional cloths weaver from the town of Ah-ma-rah-pu-rah
near Mandalay City, before the Myanmar Army’s 2021 Coup.
After the Coup our Nagar-Gyi abandoned his family
business, joined the MDY-PDF, and received military training from the KIA
(Kachin Independence Army). He is now one of the PDF’s shock-rocket experts.
According to him they had to wait near the target two days to observe and then work-out the rocket trajectory after fifteen days trek through the jungle. “Shooting a rocket is not an easy peasy job. You can’t just fire it willy-nilly. We had to calculate height from sea level, incline degree, latitude and laungtitude, everything,” said him.
He said that, on that day they had fired all eight
rockets they brought along, from two:pm in the afternoon to six:pm in the
evening. “Out of 8 only 7 were successful, but the drop-bomb factory and the
warehouse were definitely damaged, I believe,” added him.
The Lifline of Myanmar Army, The DI Compounds
There are exactly twentyfive DI compounds all over
Myanmar. DI-1 to DI-25. Fifteen DIs in Magway Division, Seven in Pegu Division,
two in Nyapyidaw, and one in Rangoon. Myanmar Army’s strategic plan many decades
ago demanded to establish the Defense Industries Compounds in the hilly jungle
on the remote west bank of Irrawaddy River away from the insurgent-controlled
border areas on the East and North of Myanmar.
But unexpectedly, the presumely-safe Chin State and
Arakan State have rapidly fallen into the hands of Arakan Army (AA) and Chin
rebel forces last year respectively. Unfortunately for the Myanmar Army those
two states are situated right next to the DI compounds in the Magway and Pegu
divisions. For the West Bank of Irrawaddy River is just at the western-foothills
of Arakan Yoma and Chin Hills.
Now the AA and Chin resistance forces have a rare
opportunity to annihilate the universally hated Myanmar Army by destroying the
most of Myanmar Defense Industries compounds on the West Bank of Irrawaddy
River.
 |
| AA troops reach Arakan-Magway Border. |
After capturing Ann-based Northern Command
(Na-Pa-Kha) AA continued their offensive towards the neighbouring Magway
Division. The main highway between Magway and Ann is Ann-Padan Highway and
there are three crucial DI compounds situated close to that highway.
DI-14 is at Nga-Phe Town at ten miles away from the
Ann-Padan Highway while DI-2 is at MaLun Town and DI-10 is at Upper MinHla
Town. DI-14 mainly produces anti-aircraft rockets, DI-10 produces 40mm
Multi-Rockets launchers and DI-2 churns out various motor shells, artillery
shells, and 5.56 and 7.62 assault rifle ammos.
AA forces are now very close to DI-14 after
crossing the Arakan-Yoma Ranges. They are facing the Myanmar Army troops from
LID-88 and LID-99. Myanmar Army is so short of manpower they are now even
forcing the engineering and production staff to pickup guns and defend their DI
compounds.
PaDaung-TaungGoke Highway
The main troughfare between Arakan State and both
Pegu and Irrawaddy divisions is the famous TaungGoke-Padaung Highway and the
Town of Oat-shit-pin on that highway alone has five most important DI factory
compounds.
Gunpowder Factory DI-6, Cordite Factory DI-16,
massive Steel Refinery Plant DI-5, the 5.56 and 7.62 claibre Bullets Plant
DI-9, and the 80mm and 120 mm Mortar Shell Plant DI-3 are the five DI factory
compounds situated at the Oat-ship-pin Township on the Padaung-Taunggoke
Highway.
Once AA and allied PDF troops occupy all these DI
compounds and stop the ammo and shell production the Myanmar Army troops will
eventually run out off ammunitions and shells to survive on the various
battelfileds. Right now the davancing resistance forces are just about twenty
miles from the Oat-shit-pin Town.
Local town folks have already been leaving the town in drove, as Oat-shit-pin is full of massive army warehouses storing various ammos and shells and tons and tons of gun powder and cordite, for the people are dead sacre off massive explosions completely destroying the town once the battles reach Oat-shit-pin.
