The northern branch of the All Burma Students’Democratic Front and the People’s Defence Force have clashed with the military in the Moe Tar Lay area of Katha Township in Sagaing Region, while the regime has set fire to surrounding villages.

According to a local who requested anonymity, a firefight with about 120 regime soldiers from Infantry Battalions 88 and 78 and Light Infantry Battalion 416 occurred near Chaungwa village on Wednesday. Another skirmish occurred at Moe Tar Lay milestone at 4:30 pm.

Between 22-23 January, the battalions, which are stationed at the Moe Tar Lay Hill Buddhist monastery, reportedly raided Taik Kon and set fire to 30 houses, another anonymous source said. At 7am the next day, they burnt down all the remaining houses and more soldiers were dispatched from Shwegu in three motor boats.

According to local reports, the military burned down 30 houses and a school in Alae Kyun on 20 January. A couple of days earlier, a fighter jet attacked Moe Tar Lay in the afternoon and at least seven were killed and 30 wounded.

Following the airstrike, fighting with the resistance forces, including the Kachin Independence Army, and the military intensified in Tar Lay during, which the regime suffered many fatalities, locals said.

“Soldiers jumped into the river and swam away from the clash location. But we didn’t capture their weapons because a fighter jet was attacking us,” said an anonymous source close to the resistance groups.

The person said at least 130 regime soldiers were killed or injured. A MI-17 gunship was sent to collect the dead bodies and the injured, making six trips to their Tantar Oo air base in Mandalay.