As the sun slowly sets behind the jungle-covered mountains of northern Burma’s Kachin state, a dozen or so rebel fighters are preparing for a night in the trenches at their hilltop post.
Conditions are tough, and the men say they struggle to sleep in their damp dugouts. The enemy is never far — Burmese army troops can be seen stationed on another hilltop, some 500 meters away.
Several such posts, manned by around 200 Kachin soldiers, are the only southern line of defense separating government forces from Laiza, a nearby town on the Burma-China border and a Kachin Independence Army (KIA) stronghold. Though this particular area, called Lawa Yang, has not seen serious clashes for two years, the soldiers are wary as violence is rising across the region.
“We are worried there could also be fighting here,” says Lt. Col Zhau Hpan, a burly Kachin veteran who commands Lawa Yang. “We think the Burma army wants to increase the fighting. In the north, we see they are building new roads to position their artillery.” Full story...
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Conditions are tough, and the men say they struggle to sleep in their damp dugouts. The enemy is never far — Burmese army troops can be seen stationed on another hilltop, some 500 meters away.
Several such posts, manned by around 200 Kachin soldiers, are the only southern line of defense separating government forces from Laiza, a nearby town on the Burma-China border and a Kachin Independence Army (KIA) stronghold. Though this particular area, called Lawa Yang, has not seen serious clashes for two years, the soldiers are wary as violence is rising across the region.
“We are worried there could also be fighting here,” says Lt. Col Zhau Hpan, a burly Kachin veteran who commands Lawa Yang. “We think the Burma army wants to increase the fighting. In the north, we see they are building new roads to position their artillery.” Full story...
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