Nine military council vessels have arrived in Banmaw city, Kachin State, where military personnel are forcibly detaining local civilians and compelling them to serve as porters to unload supplies from the ships under heavy security presence. The military ships arrived on August 2, after which military council troops systematically began arresting civilians in the city.
The detained civilians have been forced to wear blue shirts and carry supplies from the ships, while a large contingent of military council troops maintains strict security measures. Local sources report that the military had already begun arresting civilians before the ships’ arrival, making them wear blue shirts to prevent friendly fire incidents among their own troops.
This naval group had previously reached Shwegu town on July 28, where they encountered resistance from the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Kachin People’s Defense Force (KPDF). The resulting attacks led to the destruction of three vessels by fire. Unable to proceed directly to Banmaw, the fleet was forced to repeatedly retreat to Shwegu before finally managing to reach Banmaw city.
The same naval group had faced earlier resistance when they first departed from Mandalay along the Irrawaddy River. While passing through Sagaing Region’s Pale township, revolutionary forces launched attacks that resulted in one military vessel being destroyed by fire and another sinking. Two additional vessels were rendered inoperable and had to cease their journey. Currently, local residents report that military council troops have established a heavy security presence at the corner of U Nyan Hling (NY) Store Street in Banmaw city.
