Battle of Ann

Last updated
Battle of Ann
Part of Operation 1027 (Rakhine Theatre) in the Myanmar civil war
Battle of Ann (October - December 2024).svg
Date24 October – 20 December 2024
Location
Ann, Ann Township
Result Arakan Army victory
Territorial
changes		 Arakan Army captures Ann
Belligerents
Flag of Myanmar.svg State Administration Council
Commanders and leaders
Brig. Gen. Thaung Tun  (POW)
Brig. Gen. Kyaw Kyaw Than  (POW) [1]
Units involved

Flag of the Armed Forces (Tatmadaw) of Myanmar.svg  Tatmadaw

Infobox AA.png Arakan Army
Flag of PDF Myanmar.svg People's Defense Force

Asho Chin Defence Force
Casualties and losses

Flag of the Armed Forces (Tatmadaw) of Myanmar.svg  Tatmadaw

  • 300 surrendered [2]

Infobox AA.png Arakan Army

  • unknown

In September 2024, the Arakan Army launched an offensive to capture the city of Ann, the location of the headquarters of the Myanmar military's Western Command. The battle was a culmination of a year-long offensive by the Arakan Army to capture the entirety of Rakhine State. The battle ultimately resulted in the total defeat of junta forces on 20 December and the complete capture of Ann by Arakan Army forces.

Contents

Background

Ann is strategically located, linking Rakhine State with central Myanmar. The city host Junta’s Western Command headquarter, together with many other military facilities (Light Infantry Battalions 371, 372, 323; Field medical battalion and a logistics battalion). It also has an airport, which is now in control of the Arakan Army. The Arakan Army begun the offensive to capture the township on 24 March 2024, as part of the larger Rakhine offensive (2023-present). The offensive started in November 2023, concurrently with Operation 1027 launched by the Three Brotherhood Alliance, since the AA is a member of it. By November 2024, AA controls Northern Rakhine State and most of the central and southern part of it. To stop the ethnic army advance, junta conducted airstrikes using jet fighters, Y-12 and Y-8 aircraft. Media reported that the regime is also using 600 forcibly conscripted Rohingya men to defend Ann and Taungup [3] The Student Armed Force and other resistance groups, including People’s Defense Forces, from Magwe Region are fighting alongside the AA in Ann. [4]

Battle

Beginning on 26 September, the Arakan Army launched an offensive against military bases around Ann. [5] On 1 October, the Arakan Army launched an attack on the Mae Taung tactical operation command, a military installation near Ann, and captured the base on 7 October in spite of heavy air and artillery bombardment. The Arakan Army had captured several bases in the surrounding area in the preceding weeks. [6] Mae Taung was an important defensive bulwark for the junta's Western Command headquarters, located in Ann, and its fall opened the way forwards for the Arakan Army to attack Ann proper. [7] During the course of the battle, the junta began ordering the evacuation of nearby villages, [8] and allegedly conducted airstrikes against civilian targets following the base's fall. [6] [9]

Following the fall of Mae Taung, government employees in Ann began to flee the city as fighting drew closer, while junta troops began restricting movement for civilians. [10] Fighting continued as the Arakan Army continued to seize military bases outside of the city, capturing two on 11 October. [11] On 12 October, the regime cut internet and phone services in most of Rakhine. [12] Fighting continued through October as the Arakan Army continued to close in on the city, with clashes throughout nearby villages. [13] [14] On 20 October, artillery hit the Western Command's military hospital, causing doctors and patients to evacuate to the city's school. The general hospital in the city was also closed due to the fighting. [15] According to Narinjara News, by 24 October two thirds of the town's population had fled, while those who remained suffered from acute food shortages. [16]

By 21 October, the Arakan Army had begun attacking the Western Command headquarters near the town. The group had reportedly completely surrounded the town and occupied Ann's airport. [17] [18] The Arakan Army intensified its attacks on junta installations, defeating military forces stationed around the Western Command headquarters. [19] The Irrawaddy reported on 28 October that only 3,000 residents remained in the town. [20] They also reported that troops within the Western Command were divided, with a group seeking to surrender while others wished to fight on. [18] By the end of October, three-quarters of battalions under the command of the Western Command had reportedly fallen to the Arakan Army. [18] On 6 November, another of the remaining battalions defending the Western Command headquarters was captured. [21] On 10 November, the Arakan Army shot down a Mi-17 helicopter being used to bring supplies into the besieged town. Only two bases in the town remained occupied by junta forces. [22] Later that month, the Student Armed Force, Minbu District Battalion-2 (PDF unit), and Asho Chin Defence Force (CDF unit) ambushed and largely captured a group of junta soldiers who were trying to escape from Ann. [23]

By 14 November only two of the remaining 10 Junta positions in Ann hold combat forces, while the rest house auxiliary units. Rakhine media are reporting that around 300 junta troops, including majors, recently surrendered to the AA while around 3,000 residents remain trapped in Ann town by the fighting. [24] . By 26 November frequent clashes are being reported in mountainous areas along the Ann-Padan Road on the border between Rakhine State and Magway Region as local resistance groups attempt to prevent junta reinforcements and supplies from reaching Ann town [25] .

On 20 December, the Arakan Army said it had seized the headquarters of the Western Command. [26]

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References

  1. ↑ AA Fully Controls Western Command, 20 December 2024
  2. ↑ [Junta on Brink of Losing Four More Towns in Rakhine: Arakan Army]
  3. ↑ [Junta on Brink of Losing Four More Towns in Rakhine: Arakan Army]
  4. ↑ []
  5. ↑ "Rebel army advances on junta's western headquarters in Myanmar's Rakhine state". Radio Free Asia. 18 October 2024.
  6. 1 2 "AA Seizes Another Strategic Junta Base in Rakhine's Mae Taung". The Irrawaddy. 8 October 2024.
  7. ↑ "AA Captures Crucial Mel Taung Tactical Operation Command Near Ann's Western Command". Narinjara News. 7 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  8. ↑ "Junta orders evacuation of 7 Ann villages, residents stated leaving". Narinjara News. 7 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  9. ↑ "AA captures Mel Taung tactical operation command in Ann". Narinjara News. 9 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  10. ↑ "Departmental employees flee as fighting approaches Ann". Narinjara News. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  11. ↑ "Junta relinquishes military installations including 373rd battalion in Ann". Narinjara News. 13 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  12. ↑ "The Junta Cuts Off Phone and Internet Services Across Arakan State, Except in Three Townships". Narinjara News. 16 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  13. ↑ "Junta Forces Set Fire to Lone Village Near Ann Town during intensify fighting with AA". Narinjara News. 22 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  14. ↑ "Artillery shells hit 2 Ann villages, kill 4 civilians, injure 7 others". Narinjara News. 22 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  15. ↑ "Military Hospital in Ann Medical Corps Relocated Due to AA Offensive". Narinjara News. 23 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  16. ↑ "Ann Town Faces Rice Shortage Amid Escalating Fighting". Narinjara News. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  17. ↑ "Arakan Army Encircle Myanmar Junta Western Command in Rakhine State". The Irrawaddy. 25 October 2024.
  18. 1 2 3 "Myanmar Junta's Western Command Buckling as Troops Mull Surrender: Sources". The Irrawaddy. 30 October 2024.
  19. ↑ "Three Combat Units of Western Command in Ann Fall into the Hands of AA". Narinjara News. 25 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  20. ↑ "Clashes Intensify in Rakhine's Ann as AA Tightens Noose on Myanmar Military's Western Command". The Irrawaddy. 28 October 2024.
  21. ↑ "Arakan Army Targets Myanmar Junta's Rakhine Power Hub". The Irrawaddy. 7 November 2024.
  22. ↑ "Rebels Shoot Down Junta Chopper in Rakhine". The Irrawaddy. 12 November 2024.
  23. ↑ "Student Armed Force captures 14 soldiers from the Junta, including Major Zaw Htet Naung, on Arakan Mountains road". Narinjara News. 29 November 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  24. ↑ [Junta on Brink of Losing Four More Towns in Rakhine: Arakan Army]
  25. ↑ []
  26. ↑ "An ethnic armed group in western Myanmar claims to have captured a major regional army headquartersh". Associated Press. December 20, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.

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