The KNU Thaton District officials told Than Lwin Times that the regime’s Border Guard Force (BGF) army threatened to fire heavy weapons into the village if the villagers did not report on KNLA joint forces in Hpa-an Township.

The No. (1014) BGF battalion under the military council in Hpha-an Township warned the villages not to allow KNLA / PDF joint forces to enter the villages, and they would fire into the villages with heavy weapons if they failed to report.

"If they continue to abuse the locals like this, the military situation will become tense and the fighting will continue. Fighting between armed groups is not a problem, but we condemn what is being done to the people," said a KNU Thatthong district official.

On September 4, the No. 1014 BGF battalion called the elders in the Tagongbo village tract to Meikhtila (Phayargone) BGF camp and threatened to open fire on the village if they did not report about the KNLA joint forces.

The Nyaungone BGF Checkpoint recently fired heavy weapons into Kyonkhana village, damaging two local homes, KNU Thaton District reported.

Furthermore, 11 rounds of 60 mm mortar shells were fired from the Nyaungone BGF gate on August 27, causing an explosion in the villages of Nyaungone, Kyongkhana, and Nawnawtwah.

The military regime’s BGF unit has summoned village chiefs and threatened them, and has been firing heavy weapons into the villages for no reason, raising concerns among local residents.

There is still tension between the military council and the KNLA joint forces in the areas held by KNU Brigade 1 in Hpa-an.