SAA event in Shan, Namlawng area, Myanmar on Tue 18th August 2026

Local villagers say that a KIA checkpoint in Muse Township, northern Shan State, was opened fire on a truck that refused to stop for inspection. Dissatisfied with the incident, locals set the checkpoint on fire.

The incident occurred yesterday (August 18) morning between KIA forces and locals who were at a checkpoint near Nam Lai village, between Muse and Nam Kham. Locals said Sai Lai Saeng, a 30-year-old Nam San villager who was driving a truck, was injured.

“They said the car didn’t stop and they accidentally hit our villagers. The villagers also didn’t accept the gate being open there. So they destroyed their gate,” said a villager from Nam Lai.

The injured male driver was taken to Muse Hospital with serious injuries.

“I was hit in the chest and under the armpit. This morning, I was hit by a bullet. The wound is very serious,” said another local.

The KIA told Myanmar Now this afternoon that they have detained their soldier who committed the shooting during the incident.

“The driver did not stop at the checkpoint and threatened to drive away. He hit another driver while he was driving. We have also called our comrade to check him according to the rules,” said KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu.

Colonel Naw Bu added that KIA is searching for the getaway car and its driver.

Nam Lai village is part of the Naung Sai village tract in Muse Township, and since early this year, KIA troops have been opening gates at the entrance to the village and collecting money, according to locals.

“They charge 100,000 baht for a small car. They also charge market trucks and trucks with small loads. The groups here are all together, so they pay everything. When I went to tell them I was not satisfied, they said they opened it under orders from above, but they didn’t remove it,” said a resident of Nam Kham.

Although the gate was burned down by locals, the villagers of Nam Lai said that all KIA forces have not withdrawn from the area.

“They have removed the road. They have not removed the road from where their officers are on the ground. The villagers are still waiting,” said a villager from the upper Nam Lai village.

KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu said that if the locals have any grievances regarding the incident, they can discuss it directly with KIA officials, adding that the destruction of the camps by a group of people could damage the long-term relationship between the locals and their forces.

Muse and Kutkai in northern Shan State are the main areas of operation for the KIA’s 4th and 6th Brigades. The KIA’s 6th Brigade is the main operating battalion along the Muse-Namkham road.

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) is a powerful ethnic rebel group that has rejected the military’s peace offer.

On the 14th of this month, the military bombed the village of Timar, where the KIA Brigade (4) is operating in Kutkai township in northern Shan State. Similarly, there are clashes between the military and the KIA in Moe Myit Township in northern Shan State.

According to the results of “Operation 1027,” the military controlled the upper districts of Muse, but the Muse-Namkham road and Namkham town were captured by the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA). In March this year, the Kokang National Liberation Army (MNDAA) recaptured Kutkai, which was controlled by its ally TNLA, as well as Se Lant village on the Muse-Namkham road.

The Muse-Nam Kham road is more than 20 miles long and is controlled by the military up to the Pang Kham Bridge at the Muse exit. Then, the MNDAA has set up a camp in Selat village, seven miles from Muse town.

Locals say that Nam Lai and Naung Laung villages are controlled by the KIA and the Shan State Army SSPP, while Nam Kham town is controlled by the TNLA. Tourists and locals pay taxes to these groups, according to local residents.