Myanmar junta claims town captured, expanding election reach

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The embattled junta plans to hold elections in areas it controls starting on Dec 28, and has been pressing a series of counter-offensives to expand the territory it holds.
Yangon - Myanmar's junta said on Aug 20 its troops had captured a key town in the east after a 16-day battle, clawing back rebel-contested territory as it prepares for a disputed December election.
Demoso, 105km east of the capital Naypyitaw, has witnessed intense fighting since the military's overthrow of the democratic government in 2021 sparked a civil war.
The embattled junta plans to hold elections in areas it controls starting on Dec 28, and has been pressing a series of counter-offensives to expand the territory it holds.
The polls have been criticised by international monitors as a tactic to rebrand the rule of the military, which has kept democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi jailed since ousting her.
State mouthpiece newspaper the Global New Light of Myanmar said the military captured Demoso township – encompassing the town and surrounding countryside – after a 16-day battle that ended on Aug 19.
However, one resident said there was still a constant drumbeat of gunfire, heavy weapons and air strikes and denied that the military had total command of the area.
'The fighting is close and I'm always afraid in my heart whenever I hear explosions,' said 26-year-old Moe Moe. 'We are very worried, especially in the night-time as we can't sleep.'
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'If they actually controlled this area we would see them in person, but there are none now near us,' she said.
The Global New Light of Myanmar said six bodies were recovered after pro-democracy guerrillas and fighters from ethnic armed organisations in the area were driven out.
'Some of the security force members were wounded and deceased,' it said, without giving further details.
A photo showed junta soldiers posing with their rifles aloft in front of a sign reading: 'You are warmly welcomed to Demoso.'
More than 130,000 people have been displaced in the state of Kayah, where Demoso sits on the crossroads of two highways branching off from the main route linking Naypyitaw and the commercial capital Yangon.
The junta-organised election will be held in phases and is expected to take weeks.
Conflict monitors say the run-up is likely to see a further spike in violence as the junta attempts to expand the reach of the vote into enclaves controlled by its opponents.
A junta-organised census, held as preparation for the election, failed to contact nearly four out of 10 people in the country of more than 50 million, indicating how limited the poll might be.
Some democratic lawmakers ousted in the coup have called for a boycott, while Ms Suu Kyi's immensely popular National League for Democracy party has been dissolved.
'The terrorist military group is attempting to stage an illegitimate and fraudulent election to sustain its grip on power,' the National Unity Government, a self-proclaimed administration in exile, said in a statement.
'All revolutionary groups are urged to stand united with the people in resisting and overcoming this trap,' it said. AFP