Over 150 villagers forced to flee after fighting in Kutkai

07 February 2018
Over 150 villagers forced to flee after fighting in Kutkai
Soldiers of the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), a Palaung ethnic armed group, standing guard outside a village in Mantong township, in Myanmar's northern Shan state. Photo: Ye Aung Thu/AFP

Clashes between the Myanmar army and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) in eastern Myanmar’s Shan state have forced more than 150 residents of the town of Kutkai to flee to safety to Theinni town, RFA has reported.
Hostilities between the TNLA and government military and occasional clashes between the TNLA and the Shan State Army-South (SSA-S) — have forced thousands of residents in northern Shan state to flee their homes and seek shelter in Buddhist monasteries.
The more than 150 residents of Pharsai and Saikhaung villages in Kutkai have taken shelter inside a monastery in Theinni’s Kaungai village.