Myanmar junta intensifies effort to retake key roads near Hpakant

A column of more than 600 junta troops has been advancing on the Kachin State town of Hpakant since late last month, as Myanmar’s military attempts to regain control of roads around the major jade-mining centre, according to local sources.

The column has been marching towards Hpakant since it left the town of Kamaing, some 35 miles to the east, on April 23, the sources said. Since then, it has engaged in heavy fighting with the combined forces of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Kachin People’s Defence Force (PDF), which currently control the main roads connecting Hpakant to other towns in the area.