Locals say that five Namtu Township villagers are missing and presumably being detained by an armed group, and 100 more people have fled to nearby Hsipaw as conflict continues in northern Shan State.

A native of Ner Kay village, 50-year-old Sai Teng was reportedly taken away by troops at around 8 a.m. last Thursday, and four more civilians from the village of Pang Kut were arrested in a similar manner on July 31.

Radio Free Asia reported the disappearance of the four villagers, linking it with the presence of the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) in the area. Meanwhile, soldiers from the Northern Alliance—a coalition of ethnic armed groups, of which RCSS/SSA is not a member—accused the same Shan armed organization of detaining Sai Teng.

Speaking to SHAN on the condition of anonymity, an RCSS/SSA official said that the group does not arrest locals.

On the same day that the Pang Kut villagers disappeared, artillery shells landed near the community, in the southwestern part of Namtu Township, leading to 100 people fleeing the area and seeking refuge in neighboring Hsipaw.

Military tension in the area is linked to the presence of multiple armed groups, including government forces the RCSS/SSA, the Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army.