By MPA CJ 023
It is reported that five soldiers were killed in the fighting to liberate the western region of the Irrawaddy River.
On May 23rd, at around 11:00 in the afternoon, while 24 soldiers on 12 motorbikes were going from Sidoktaya- Ngape Road to Sidoktaya Town, PDFs exploded landmines (hand-mand) near Mandatkaing Village and exchanged fire with small arms for about 15 minutes. The People’s Revolution Alliance (PRA-Magway) announced that three soldiers were killed, four were injured and one gun was seized.
“I heard the news that the soldiers by motorcycle were going from the Sidoktaya- Ngape Road to Sidoktaya Town, so we set up landmines (hand-made) and waited for them in advance. When the first three motorcycles entered the minefield, we exploded it. We shot each other. One of our comrades was killed.
One of us was hit in the arm. I saw a motorcycle that escaped when we exploded landmines. He was followed and shot with a small weapon. I saw the soldier on the back of the motorcycle hit the leg,” said PRA-Magway Adjutant General Naung Thurain.
After the battle, it was learned that the SAC sent the dead and injured to Magway Military Hospital.
On May 23, around 9:00 a.m., Minbu District Battalion (1) and PDF- Salin rocketed at the SAC Gate at the entrance of Kyuntaw Road in Sidoktaya Township, killing two soldiers.
He said that these attacks were a strategically balanced operation for the liberation of the western region of the Irrawaddy River.
The MPA could not independently confirm the soldiers’ injuries and deaths.