The junta has been carrying out offensives against the towns of Mindat and Kanpetlet in southern Chin State, with intensified airstrikes on Mindat in recent days causing widespread damage.
On the morning of June 8, the junta carried out airstrikes across Mindat Township. Between 10:30 a.m. and 11:15 a.m., 2 fighter jets conducted 3 bombing runs on the eastern side of Mindat Town, dropping a total of 6 bombs. At the same time, a Y-12 utility aircraft carried out 9 bombing runs, dropping 4 to 5 grenades per run, for a total of more than 40 munitions.
Earlier that day, at around 7:30 a.m. on June 8, 2 junta fighter jets dropped 6 bombs on eastern parts of Mindat Town. Around 1:00 a.m. on June 7, 2 junta fighter jets dropped two 500-pound bombs on downtown Mindat, damaging at least 10 homes. Later that morning, around 10:30 a.m., the regime air force carried out another strike in which 2 fighter aircraft dropped 4 additional bombs.
Details on casualties and the extent of damage from the junta’s series of airstrikes on Mindat Town remain unknown. Both Mindat and Kanpetlet towns were also struck by junta airstrikes on June 6.
The junta is currently attempting to advance from the Yaw area of Magway Region into southern Chin State, deploying more than 2,000 troops in a fierce offensive against resistance coalition forces in Mindat and Kanpetlet, supported by heavy airstrikes. Intense clashes have continued in the region since mid-May.
The Chin People’s Union/Chin People’s Army (CPU/CPA) said that after Chin resistance forces successfully repelled the junta’s ground offensives, the regime has been deploying fighter jets and Y-12 aircraft to weaken the resistance’s defensive positions.
Towns in southern Chin State, including Mindat, are reportedly enduring the junta’s notorious Four Cuts strategy, leaving local communities in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. The Four Cuts strategy refers to a tactic aimed at cutting off access to food, funding, intelligence, and recruitment in resistance-held areas.
Resistance forces have also urged locals to contribute funds to support defense operations in southern Chin State and to make advance preparations against air assaults.