A junta airstrike hit the downtown areas and a public hospital in the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) controlled Kyaukme Town in northern Shan State on 5 May 2025.

A junta fighter flew over the town and carried out two bombing runs at about 11:00 am.

On 6 May, a woman from Kyaukme Town said to NMG: “A series of bombs were dropped in the town and near the hospital. The two bombing runs happened around 11:00 a.m. Some of the bombs landed right on the streets, which really terrified the locals. Now, people are staying alert, listening closely for any signs of more aircraft overhead.”

Also in northern Shan State, junta airstrikes hit TNLA-held Naungcho (Nawnghkio) Town and villages in Naungcho Township on 4 May.

Prior to that, junta airstrikes had already hit Naungcho Town on 3 May. Airstrikes also hit TNLA-controlled Mogok Town in Mandalay Region on 2 May. On 30 April they hit villages in TNLA-controlled Mogok Township.

A resident of Mogok Town said to NMG: “The bombings in Mogok are happening almost every day. Planes keep flying over the town constantly. People are living in fear every single day. We have to stay alert all the time because danger can come at any moment. I'm especially worried about the children’s safety. We really don’t want to be displaced again. That’s why we’re living in a constant state of vigilance, always watching for what might come next.”

These attacks followed the collapse of Chinese brokered peace negotiations between the junta and the TNLA, held on 28 and 29 April 2025 in the Chinese town of Kunming. They broke down on 29 April because the TNLA, unsurprisingly, refused the junta’s demands to hand back the northern Shan State towns of Naungcho, Kyaukme, Thibaw (Hsipaw) and Mogok Town in Mandalay Region that it has captured from the junta.

At a press conference following the failed talks, the TNLA claimed that the junta and China were putting pressure on the TNLA to withdraw from the towns it occupied. But, the TNLA reaffirmed its commitment to resist and maintain its positions despite the mounting pressure.

Following the collapse of the negotiations the junta resumed airstrikes on TNLA-held towns. It also deployed additional troops and increased patrols near TNLA-controlled areas.

The TNLA has urged people in areas that it controls to remain vigilant against airstrikes and to closely follow air defence guidelines.