Bo Nagar, the founder and leader of the anti-military Burma National Revolutionary Army (BNRA), shared on Tuesday that at least 10 BNRA members were killed by the People’s Defence Force (PDF) under National Unity Government (NUG) command during fighting in Sagaing Region’s Pale Township on Feb. 17.
He added that regime forces also carried out attacks using gyrocopters against BNRA and PDF forces during the fighting. wsnews24.com contacted the NUG but did not receive a response in time for publication. Three BNRA members allegedly killed a PDF member, identified as Ka Tone, during a shootout in Pale on Feb. 12, according to a BNRA statement on Feb. 13.
The BNRA accused Ka Tone of being involved in armed robberies using a weapon issued to him by the BNRA to “guard a village” in 2022. At the time Ka Tone was a militia member not in the PDF, according to the BNRA.
Pale is located 39 miles (62 km) southwest of the Sagaing Region capital Monywa. The PDF under the NUG controls the southern part of Pale while the BNRA controls the north, according to residents.
The BNRA is not under NUG command, but Bo Nagar was a founding member of the PDF in Pale following the 2021 military coup.
Bo Nagar refuted claims that his forces raided the PAT checkpoint, adding that the incident was a “quarrel” between the two resistance groups.
This incident came nine days after PDF members cleared four BNRA checkpoints for allegedly “collecting taxes from vehicles” in the northern part of the township under BNRA control on Jan. 9.
On Jan. 8, the BNRA stated that the PDF was preparing to launch an attack against its forces, warning residents to remain alert. No casualties have been reported.
Richard Horsey, the senior Myanmar advisor at the International Crisis Group (ICG), told DVB that taxation has become a challenge for resistance groups administering territory seized since the 2021 coup.
Collecting taxes from residents has become more of a challenge for resistance forces since August. This is when the United Wa State Army (UWSA) stopped supplying ammunition and weapons to resistance forces due to “Chinese pressure.”
The PDF has lost territory it seized in 2024 to regime forces in Mandalay Region’s Singu, Madaya and Thabeikkyin townships. The three towns are located 57-90 miles (91-144 km) north of Mandalay.
The NUG Ministry of Defence gave an order to the PDF on Feb. 10 that all of its taxation checkpoints in Depayin Township, Sagaing Region, must be closed by Feb. 17. Depayin, located 40 miles (64 km) north of Monywa, is partially under PDF control.
A PDF member in Depayin told wsnews24.com that the NUG plans to revise its taxation policies to provide relief to residents, adding that all checkpoints have already been closed.
The BNRA seized control of its territory in northern Pale on Nov. 11, 2024. It accused one of its former battalion commanders of stealing weapons and ammunition when he left to join the NUG Ministry of Defence in 2023.
