In Karen State’s Myawaddy Tow, some members of the Karen Border Guard Force (BGF) factions, which had changed their badges to signal an intention to shift from a junta-aligned armed group to the more independently operating Karen National Army (KNA), are now wearing their original badges again and returning to their previous posts, according to local sources.

Some BGF factions had been preparing for years to transform into the KNA, and on January 1 began wearing KNA badges, officially marking the establishment of the new organization.

However, not all BGF military regional commands were converted into the KNA, with only part of the group opting for the shift. The remaining BGF regional commands have continued to be stationed alongside junta troops in Myawaddy Town.

Later, under pressure from the junta, KNA-uniformed personnel were forced to withdraw from Myawaddy Town. The junta also ramped up patrols in the town as a show of force and threatened severe retaliation if the KNA attacked its troops in Myawaddy.

On January 30, a junta reinforcement convoy of about 30 vehicles departed from Eindu Village in Hpa-An Township, Karen State, and headed toward Myawaddy along the Kyondoe–Kawkareik Highway, witnesses said.

Following these developments, which highlighted the junta’s limited tolerance toward the KNA, some KNA troops reverted to the BGF.

“A lot of people in Myawaddy have taken the KNA badges off their uniforms and put their BGF badges back on. They’re just moving around town like normal. Some of them are hoping the KNA will attack the junta, but that would be really hard, since their homes and businesses are still here in Myawaddy,” said a senior military source in Myawaddy, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The junta ordered all combatants wearing KNA badges to leave Myawaddy by January 25. After that deadline, some KNA troops remained in the town, either wearing BGF badges or going without any badges.

“On January 28, the KNA troops left town. But there were still some KNA members hanging around in Myawaddy, either wearing BGF badges or with no badges on their uniforms at all,” a town resident told KIC.

While KNA troops remain in the town, the junta has been conducting patrols as a show of force. Amid speculation that the KNA’s presence could push Myawaddy toward military conflict, some locals are carefully preparing to evacuate to the Thai border if necessary.

Myawaddy is a key border town for Thai-Myanmar trade. While the junta’s administration remains in operation, the BGF, Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), and Karen National Union/Karen National Liberation Army–Peace Council (KNU/KNLA-PC), all of which have maintained close ties with the junta, have also been active in the area for many years.