Myanmar Junta's Brutal Campaign in Ywangan Township: Displacement, Arson, and Unlawful Arrests

Strategic Insights -

Massive operations by the Myanmar junta have left hundreds of civilians displaced and their homes and livelihoods destroyed in Ywangan township, southern Shan State. Initiated in late July 2025, the campaign involved multiple junta forces, including Light Infantry Divisions 55 and 99, targeting local People's Defence Forces and villages along the Ywangan-Meiktila border. The assaults led to the destruction of civilian homes, food stores, and an internally displaced persons camp, with nearly 500 civilians remaining displaced in the area. The Shan Human Rights Foundation has condemned the military's actions as collective punishment against civilians supporting the resistance.

Key Takeaways:

  • Over 500 troops from Light Infantry Divisions 55 and 99 launched operations against local People's Defence Forces in Ywangan township in late July 2025, sparking clashes that lasted into mid-August.
  • Junta helicopter strikes on August 18 damaged civilian homes in Kyauktaw and Nyaung Pin Thar villages.
  • Between August 19-21, troops fired 155 mm artillery into nearby forests where villagers were sheltering, followed by additional airstrikes on August 21.
  • On August 23, a column of 80 soldiers occupied Kyauktaw, looting homes and slaughtering livestock before torching 37 houses.
  • The attacks escalated in September, with around 100 junta troops and militia burning down temporary shelters used by displaced residents of Min Palaung village, who had been living in the forest since their homes were destroyed in December 2024.
  • On September 13, about 120 troops returned to Kyauktaw, burning farm huts and later destroying 23 more homes and 90 rice granaries worth an estimated 150 million kyat.
  • Soldiers arrested five civilians, including an eight-year-old girl, after discovering a hiding place in nearby forests on September 15.
  • A landslide struck an IDP camp later that month, killing ten people, including three children, and junta forces subsequently destroyed additional shelters used by displaced villagers.

Statistics:

  • An estimated 37 homes were torched on August 25 in Kyauktaw.
  • 23 homes and 90 rice granaries worth an estimated 150 million kyat were destroyed on September 13 in Kyauktaw.
  • 10 people, including 3 children, were killed in a landslide on an IDP camp in September.
  • Over 500 civilians remain displaced in forests around Kyauktaw and Nyaung Pin Thar.

Sources:

  • Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF), report dated 16 October, no specific title mentioned.