The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and allied forces, engaged in intense fighting against junta troops in Kachin State’s Hpakant Township, successfully retook the Lagat Kawng military outpost near Sharaw Hka Village.
A resident of Hpakant Township told KNG that the KIA-led coalition launched a heavy attack on the outpost on August 4 and succeeded in capturing it by that evening.
“The KIA launched the offensive around 5:00 am. It had lost the outpost on August 2 but has now taken it back. There are still junta troops nearby, and the fighting hasn't stopped yet. We can still hear the echoes of artillery shelling around the Lagat Kawng outpost,” he said.
The Lagat Kawng military outpost is situated on a hill, and the KIA had maintained a position there since 2024, until it was briefly captured by the junta.
Over the past two months, junta troops have conducted military operations around Sharaw Hka Village and nearby settlements. On August 1, they launched a full-scale offensive toward the village, prompting the KIA to temporarily withdraw from the Lagat Kawng outpost the next day. However, the KIA successfully retook the outpost within three days.
As of August 5, the KIA and allied forces continued their attacks on junta units around the outpost, another Hpakant resident reported.
“Right now, junta troops remain positioned in Mawmawlayan and Sut Bum (Ahmitepone) villages near Sharaw Hka. On August 1 and 2, they launched a major offensive that made the KIA withdraw for a short time, but the fighting has been ongoing since then,” he said.
Between August 1 and 4, at least 13 civilians were killed when artillery shells from junta attacks struck settlements near the battle zone.
On August 3 alone, artillery shelling by the junta struck Sharaw Hka Village, killing one man and seriously wounding another, while four men were injured in Sankywei Village.
On the morning of August 4, an artillery shell landed in Myaukphyu Village, north of Sharaw Hka, killing a 5-year-old child and a 35-year-old man, and seriously injuring five other residents of Sharaw Hka.
While fighting raged near Sharaw Hka Village, the artillery shell fired by the junta’s Tactical Operations Command (TOC) based in Hpakant Town targeted the combat zone but missed Sharaw Hka and struck Myaukphyu Village, Hpakant residents said.
Fighting in Hpakant Township resumed in early August after about a week of calm, resulting in renewed civilian casualties.
Junta troops resumed military operations in Hpakant Township in April. In June, they intensified efforts to seize control of the strategically vital Mawmau Bum and Lamawng Kawng hills.
Despite receiving artillery support from the Hpakant TOC and air support from the Air Force, the junta’s ground forces have been unable to advance due to the determined resistance of the KIA and allied forces, leaving them stuck in Mawmawlayan and Sut Bum villages for around two months.
