How will resistance forces repel junta’s offensive in southern Mon State?

The junta has launched military operations along the Ye–Thanbyuzayat section of Union Highway 8, a key resistance stronghold in southern Mon State, aiming to dismantle resistance control there ahead of the election.

The junta has been advancing along the Ye–Thanbyuzayat Road in northern Ye Township since early October, according to a November 14 report by Rehmonnya Institute for Civic Engagement (RICE).

About a year after the 2021 coup, the Ye–Thanbyuzayat Road fell completely under the control of Mon and Karen resistance forces. As a result, the junta could no longer use this land route and has relied on sea transport for logistics for years.

However, reclaiming this stretch of road has become particularly significant for the junta. The regime has declared that the election will take place in phases, with Ye and Thanbyuzayat townships included in Phase 2 voting on January 11, 2026. Ensuring control over these townships is thus now a priority for the junta, RICE noted.

Nai Tala Nai, head of the Defense Department of the Mon State Federal Council (MSFC), a resistance entity, said they would commit their full efforts to opposing the election while prioritizing the minimization of harm to the public.

“We will use every means to stop the election from taking place. First, we will educate the public not to take part in the junta’s vote. But the junta will push ahead with it regardless. So, second, we will use methods that cause the least harm to the public to thwart the election. We will oppose the junta’s election in line with MSFC policies,” he told Than Lwin Times.