Battle of Kawkareik

{{see also|Karen conflict|Myanmar civil war (2021-present)}}

In 2021, the State Administration Council junta seized power in the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, sparking a civil war between the ousted National Unity Government (NUG) and renewing the long-standing Karen conflict.{{cite news |title=Myanmar Violence Escalates With Rise of 'Self-defense' Groups, Report Says |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/east-asia-pacific_myanmar-violence-escalates-rise-self-defense-groups-report-says/6207546.html |agency=Agence France-Presse |publisher=Voice of America |date=27 June 2021 |access-date=12 February 2022 |archive-date=8 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108225946/https://www.voanews.com/a/east-asia-pacific_myanmar-violence-escalates-rise-self-defense-groups-report-says/6207546.html |url-status=live}} The Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU), launched attacks in Myawaddy District and in Lay Kay Kaw as early as April 2021.{{cite web |title=Regime troops retreat with heavy causalities in Lay Kay Kaw |url=https://www.bnionline.net/en/news/regime-troops-retreat-heavy-causalities-lay-kay-kaw |website=Burma News International |language=en |access-date=21 April 2022 |archive-date=22 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220422000430/https://www.bnionline.net/en/news/regime-troops-retreat-heavy-causalities-lay-kay-kaw |url-status=live }}

In August 2022, the KNLA led attacks on the Kawkareik District police station and the General Administration Department office in Kawkareik.

The siege of Kawkareik began after a call to action from the NUG in mid October. The NUG's local People's Defence Forces (PDFs) worked with Karen rebel forces in the battle.{{cite news |first=Anthony |last=Davis |title=Myanmar's NUG going for broke before its time |url=https://asiatimes.com/2022/11/myanmars-nug-going-for-broke-before-its-time/?fbclid=IwAR05DLA_u3Wj36rVzbn0sqQrLuZX2J6KXdBE1DPQcLh8JL-I-tS68MC2Vu0 |date=4 November 2022 |work=Asia Times |access-date=5 November 2022 |archive-date=5 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221105215701/https://asiatimes.com/2022/11/myanmars-nug-going-for-broke-before-its-time/?fbclid=IwAR05DLA_u3Wj36rVzbn0sqQrLuZX2J6KXdBE1DPQcLh8JL-I-tS68MC2Vu0 |url-status=live }}

The battle itself was instigated by Boh (Lieutenant) L Say Warr, who serves the Kaw Thoo Lei Army (KTLA), a group established in July 2022. He previously served in the Karen National Defence Organisation (KNDO), the KNU's first armed wing.

Around 7 a.m. on 21 October 2022, Kaw Thoo Lei Army (KTLA) forces launched a surprise attack in Kawkareik Township, targeting police offices, toll gates and administrative offices of the junta. The junta's Light Infantry Battalion 97 responded with mortar shells, killing one and injuring two civilians. Eyewitnesses reported Myanmar Air Force aircraft flying over and bombing the Asian Highway-1 to the town's east. Fighting broke out in various parts of the town involving PDF and KNLA forces. The junta responded with heavy artillery shelling and air strikes, killing three civilians and injuring at least 15.{{cite news |title=Myanmar's KNU attacks key border town of Kawkareik |url=https://www.mizzima.com/article/myanmars-knu-attacks-key-border-town-kawkareik |author=AFP |work=Mizzima |date=22 October 2022 |access-date=5 November 2022 |archive-date=2 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221102082617/https://mizzima.com/article/myanmars-knu-attacks-key-border-town-kawkareik |url-status=live }} According to the rebels, the town was surrounded and being patrolled by the joint rebel coalition by that afternoon.

Heavy artillery shelling and air strikes from the junta targeted the military garrison base in Ward 2 while the rebel forces engaged in a battle near the General Administration Department office in Ward 7, {{convert|0.7|mi|km}} to the north.{{cite report |author=Myanmar Information Management Unit |date=December 2019 |title=Kawkareik Myone Daethasaingyarachatlatmya|script-title=my:ကော့ကရိတ်မြို့နယ် ဒေသဆိုင်ရာအချက်လက်များ|trans-title=Kawkareik Township Regional Information |url=https://themimu.info/sites/themimu.info/files/documents/TspProfiles_GAD_Kawkareik_2019_MMR.pdf|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20231212181811/https://themimu.info/sites/themimu.info/files/documents/TspProfiles_GAD_Kawkareik_2019_MMR.pdf|archive-date=December 12, 2023 |publisher=MIMU |access-date=30 November 2023}} The junta continued its shelling of the town, targeting Ward 7 of Kawkareik- destroying civilian homes in the process. Regime troops stationed in nearby Kamaigone, Kawnwet and Ywarthit villages were withdraw to defend Kawkareik.{{cite news |title=3 civilians killed, 16 others injured in Kawkareik battle |url=https://www.bnionline.net/en/news/3-civilians-killed-16-others-injured-kawkareik-battle |work=BNI online |date=24 October 2022 |language=en}}

At the end of the day, the rebel forces withdrew eastwards. Like in the July 2022 Battle of Loikaw, the junta's air strikes and multiple rocket launcher systems prevented the well-armed resistance forces from taking urban areas. However, according to Lt. Col. Saw Yan Naing of the KNLA Brigade 6, the objective of the attack was to force the junta to withdraw from positions in villages south of Kawkareik, not to take the city.{{cite news |title='Our Objective Was to Force Junta Troops from Southern Kawkareik': KNLA |work=The Irrawaddy |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/our-objective-was-to-force-junta-troops-from-southern-kawkareik-knla.html |date=26 October 2022 |language=en}} The state-run MRTV reported that the army had driven the rebels, who the news station called terrorists, after the rebels fired artillery shells into Kawkareik to destroy government personnel housing.{{cite news |title=Ethnic Karen rebels attack key town in eastern Myanmar |url=https://apnews.com/article/myanmar-government-and-politics-8e32224af90eea6a97e7c47ee126fa30 |last=Peck |first=Grant |date=21 October 2022 |work=AP News |language=en}}

Fighting continued east of the town near the Tamaw Waterfall. On 25 November, the rebel forces clashed with the junta forces on the Asian Highway east of Kawkareik, with two vehicles being set on fire as a result of the shootout. The Asian Highway remained closed because of the fighting until 26 November 2023. The KTLA warned travelers to ask them for permission first as a precaution citing that fighting was still occurring on the highway.{{cite news |title=KTLA warns people not to travel on Myawaddy-Kawkareik Asian Road without their permission |date=28 October 2022 |url=https://www.bnionline.net/en/news/ktla-warns-people-not-travel-myawaddy-kawkareik-asian-road-without-their-permission |work=BNI Online |language=en}}

On 28 October, airstrikes from the junta as part of continued fighting near Kawkareik struck and damaged a dam.{{Cite web |last=Irrawaddy |first=The |date=21 October 2022 |title=Resistance Besieges Karen Town; Myanmar Junta Counters With Airstrikes |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/resistance-besieges-karen-town-myanmar-junta-counters-with-airstrikes.html |access-date=2022-10-28 |website=The Irrawaddy |language=en-US |archive-date=28 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028152540/https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/resistance-besieges-karen-town-myanmar-junta-counters-with-airstrikes.html |url-status=live }}

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Civil war

Kawkareik

Category:Battles in 2022

Category:Battles involving Myanmar