Hello and welcome. We will now present today’s m.CDM domestic news.
Today’s headlines include:
- A former political prisoner dies from injuries sustained during interrogation in Kalay; five KNDF fighters, including a company commander, killed in a suicide-drone attack in Hpruso.
- KIA captures the Border Post No. 30 strategic base in Khaunglanhpu Township; 22 military personnel killed in clashes in Hpapun District over two weeks; military carries out widespread airstrikes after losing positions near Sittwe and Ponnagyun.
- NUG’s representative office in Japan successfully negotiates arrangements allowing Myanmar workers with expired passports to sit for the Tokutei Ginou examination.
- NUG urges the public to resist the military’s forced recruitment campaign.
We will also bring you several other news stories.
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- Former political prisoner dies from interrogation injuries in Kalay; five KNDF fighters killed in suicide-drone attack in Hpruso
m.CDM, September 18
A 32-year-old former political prisoner who was severely beaten during interrogation in Kalay, Sagaing Region, has died while receiving medical treatment in Yangon.
The man, Van Cial O Thang, reportedly developed tumors and cancer linked to internal injuries suffered during interrogation.
He had been arrested for participating in anti-military activities. Although he sustained serious internal injuries during interrogation, he was reportedly denied medical treatment while imprisoned in Kalay Prison.
He was released on December 1, 2025, and subsequently underwent medical treatment in Yangon. He died on September 13 after his cancer worsened.
Meanwhile, in Karenni State’s Hpruso Township, five members of the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force, or KNDF, including a company commander, were killed in a suicide-drone attack carried out by the military near Moso village.
The attack occurred around midday on September 17. A KNDF fighter described the deaths as a major loss for KNDF Battalion 10.
Military air and drone attacks in Karenni State have reportedly increased during September. More than 20 civilians, including children, have reportedly been killed or injured, including in the bombing of an orphanage west of Demoso.
The military, which has reportedly faced difficulties advancing in ground battles, has also continued daily drone and artillery attacks in areas along the Shan-Karenni border and in Demoso and Loikaw townships.
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- KIA captures Border Post No. 30 strategic base; 22 military personnel killed in Hpapun; airstrikes intensify in Rakhine
m.CDM, September 18
Kachin Independence Army, or KIA, allied forces captured the military’s strategic base at Border Post No. 30 in Khaunglanhpu Township, Kachin State, on the afternoon of September 18.
The base is described as a major position equipped with a helicopter landing area.
Military personnel were reportedly killed or injured during the battle, and weapons and ammunition were seized by the attacking forces.
In Hpapun District, the Karen National Union, or KNU, said 47 clashes took place between September 1 and September 15.
According to the KNU, 22 military personnel, including two captains, were killed and 20 others injured.
After losing several bases in the district, the military reportedly sent reinforcements and launched ground offensives while carrying out repeated artillery and air attacks, causing damage to civilian homes and other buildings.
Similar developments were reported in Rakhine State, where the military has reportedly lost defensive outposts and strategic positions near the border between Sittwe and Ponnagyun townships.
It has since conducted airstrikes across four townships.
From the morning through midday on September 18, around seven aircraft reportedly dropped dozens of bombs on villages in Sittwe, Ponnagyun, Pauktaw and Thandwe townships.
Fighting is currently reported to be intense around Myint Kyun and Kant Kaw Kyun in Sittwe Township and near Ye Yoe Pyin village in Ponnagyun Township.
Reports also claim that hundreds of military personnel have been killed over the past two weeks.
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- Military base in Paungde Township attacked with five rockets
m.CDM, September 18
A military base in Paungde Township, Pyay District, Bago Region, was attacked with five rockets, according to a September 18 statement by Paungde Township People’s Defence Force Battalion 3601.
The group said one member of the military was injured.
The statement concerned operations carried out on September 12, including attempts to target individuals accused of supporting the military and an attack on a military position at Pan Thin Pin village.
At about 11 a.m. on September 12, resistance forces reportedly attempted to target a former serviceman named Aye Naing in Kyar Ni Kan Ward, whom they accused of acting as a military informant.
However, military personnel from Kyar Ni Kan police station reportedly evacuated him before the operation could be completed.
At around 11 p.m. the same day, resistance fighters also raided a house in Kyar Ni Kan where military personnel were said to regularly stay and eat, but those inside reportedly escaped.
The resistance forces then attacked a military position at Pan Thin Pin village with five rockets.
One military member was reportedly injured in the attack.
The operations were conducted under the command of Strategy 21 and involved fighters from various companies of Battalion 3601 together with a special combat team from the Pyay District People’s Defence Organization.
Battalion 3601 also warned civilians not to live or travel near military positions or Pyu Saw Htee bases.
The group said it would not take responsibility for casualties resulting from people disregarding such warnings.
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- Civilian killed in military air and drone attacks in Madaya, Myaing and Pwintbyu
m.CDM, September 18
A civilian was killed and a Buddhist monk injured after the military carried out a drone bombing in western Madaya Township, Mandalay Region.
At around 8 p.m. on September 17, troops stationed in Ohn Din village reportedly dropped three bombs from a combat drone onto a monastery in Bo Gyi Kyun village.
No fighting was taking place in the area at the time, according to reports.
A lay attendant at the monastery, U Tun Wai, was killed immediately and a monk was injured.
Separately, oilfield areas along the border of Pauk and Myaing townships in Magway Region were reportedly bombed at least four times by military gyrocopters on September 16.
Three civilians were injured.
The military also reportedly used suicide drones to attack Mone Za Lai village in Pwintbyu Township on September 17.
A bomb exploded near the edge of the village. No one was injured, but one house was destroyed by fire.
Other villages in Pwintbyu Township were also reportedly targeted by military drones.
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- Military flotilla attacked while returning from Kachin State; one vessel sinks in Sagaing Region
m.CDM, September 18
A military flotilla that had suffered significant losses in fighting along the Ayeyarwady River between Shwegu and Bhamo in Kachin State was attacked again while travelling downstream toward Mandalay.
One vessel reportedly sank after the flotilla entered Sagaing Region.
According to local military sources, the military used civilian-owned boats from Shwegu to travel downstream on September 17.
The flotilla was attacked in the Moetar Lay area of Katha Township, where one vessel was hit and sank.
KIA and allied forces reportedly carried out the attack on the evening of September 17.
A local military source said the vessel that sank was carrying personnel.
The military had previously sent groups of vessels upstream in late August and early September in an attempt to reinforce its forces in Kachin State.
KIA and allied forces reportedly intercepted the flotillas.
One vessel was reportedly sunk between Katha and Shwegu, while around 20 vessels were destroyed or sunk between Shwegu and Bhamo, according to the KIA’s information department.
After suffering heavy losses, the military reportedly began withdrawing from Kachin State toward Mandalay on the afternoon of September 17 using 19 vessels, including boats owned by civilians in Shwegu.
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- Military reportedly plants landmines along Yesagyo–Pakokku road
m.CDM, September 18
The Yesagyo Township People’s Defence Organization warned on September 18 that the military had planted landmines along the Yesagyo-Pakokku road in Magway Region.
Troops based in Sin Chaung village reportedly planted anti-personnel mines along both the 12-mile section of the road and roadsides near Sin Chaung village.
Around four mines have so far been discovered, and searches are continuing, according to local resistance officials.
Travellers have been urged to exercise extreme caution along both sides of the Yesagyo-Pakokku road.
Since the 2021 military takeover, Myanmar has recorded extremely high numbers of casualties caused by landmines.
Resistance groups have also urged residents of Yesagyo Township to remain vigilant because the area is frequently subjected to military airstrikes.
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- Mawlaik District Battalion 3 awards five million kyats to SNA soldier who defected with weapon
m.CDM, September 18
Mawlaik District Battalion 3 says it awarded five million kyats to a soldier from the Shanni Nationalities Army, or SNA, who defected with a firearm.
The soldier, Wai Lin Zaw, was serving with SNA Brigade 753 based in Homalin Township.
He reportedly brought a small firearm and defected to Mawlaik District Battalion 3, which operates under People’s Defence Force Military Region 1.
According to the battalion, he crossed a flooded stream at considerable risk in order to defect.
Soon after his defection, the military reportedly sealed and confiscated his family home in Poe Sar Kone village, Homalin Township.
The defector told Battalion 3 that the SNA operates under the military’s command and that restrictions are imposed on the group’s military movements and territorial administration.
He reportedly requested permission to live with his parents, and the battalion said he was allowed to return to them.
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- NUG Japan office secures arrangements for Myanmar workers with expired passports to take Tokutei Ginou exam
m.CDM, September 18
Myanmar workers and trainees in Japan whose passports have expired will be able to sit for the Tokutei Ginou, or Specified Skilled Worker, examination following negotiations by the National Unity Government’s representative office in Japan.
A new system requires applicants to register passport information when creating a Prometric account for the examination.
Because of this requirement, Myanmar citizens who have chosen not to renew their passports through authorities under the military administration have faced difficulties applying for the exam.
The NUG’s Japan representative office said it held discussions with Japanese lawmakers and relevant authorities and was able to secure some flexibility in the process.
People with expired passports should therefore be able to create their own accounts and submit examination applications.
However, applicants are strongly advised to explain their individual circumstances to the relevant examination center in advance.
The NUG office described the development as encouraging for Myanmar citizens in Japan who have refused to renew passports under the military-controlled system.
The office said it would continue working with Japanese organizations and lawmakers to address problems faced by Myanmar trainees and workers and to protect their rights.
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- NUG urges public to resist military’s forced recruitment
m.CDM, September 18
The National Unity Government’s Ministry of Defence issued a statement on September 18 urging the public to collectively oppose the military’s forced recruitment practices.
The ministry claimed that over the past two years more than 20,000 military personnel — specifically 20,383 — have been killed, more than 9,000, or 9,792, have been injured, and around 20,000 have deserted.
It said these manpower losses were behind the military’s intensified forced recruitment of young people.
The ministry also claimed that more than 130,000 newly recruited troops have been deployed across different battlefronts and used in large-scale infantry assaults.
According to the statement, these recruits make up around 80 percent of personnel in many frontline columns and suffer the highest casualty rates.
The ministry said that recruitment is increasingly targeting young women as well as men.
Young people were urged to avoid going outside at night and, where possible, to move to areas outside military control or leave the country.
The statement also urged people who are forcibly detained for recruitment to escape when an opportunity arises.
Communities were encouraged not to ignore forced recruitment if it occurs in front of them, but instead to collectively oppose it.
The NUG said individuals who leave the military and seek refuge with resistance forces would receive assistance, while those who defect with weapons could receive financial rewards.
Young people reaching resistance-controlled areas could also take part in education, healthcare, humanitarian assistance, local development and other activities based on their skills and interests, the statement said.
The NUG also said arrangements would be made to enable them to continue their education.
Those wishing to take on combat roles could join the People’s Defence Force or local People’s Defence Organizations if they meet the necessary requirements.
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- Kim Aris calls for public support for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release
m.CDM, September 18
Kim Aris, also known as Ko Htein Lin, the son of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has called on the public to speak about his mother and join efforts calling for her release.
“Stand with me. Say my mother’s name. Share her story. Call for her freedom,” he wrote on social media on the morning of September 18.
Kim previously launched a “Proof of Life” campaign seeking evidence that his mother was alive.
According to the report, public calls from inside and outside Myanmar eventually contributed to the military allowing Aung San Suu Kyi to meet representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
He has since continued with a “Free Her” campaign calling for her release.
“My mother, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, is now 81 years old,” Kim wrote. “She remains cut off from her family and continues to be held as a hostage. I still have not been able to see her or speak with her. So many years of her life have been taken away from her. She has already lost so much time. It is time to release her.”
Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s former State Counsellor, has been detained since the military takeover on February 1, 2021.
According to the report, she has now been held for 2,056 days.
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- Tamu authorities warn travellers as fighting could break out at any time
m.CDM, September 18
The National Unity Government-affiliated Tamu Township Emergency Administration Committee issued a warning on September 17 urging people using the Asian Highway and village roads in Tamu Township, Sagaing Region, to travel with caution because fighting with the military could break out at any time.
The announcement said the warning was intended to reduce civilian casualties and ensure that the public was aware of the security situation.
The committee said attacks on military bases in Tamu District could be launched at any time.
People were therefore advised to exercise particular caution when using the Asian Highway, roads connecting towns and villages, inter-village roads and forest routes.
Residents were also urged to stay away from military positions.
The committee additionally warned people not to cooperate with the military or transport military supplies.
It urged residents to remain vigilant while travelling within the region.
The committee said it would not take responsibility for problems arising from failure to follow the warnings.
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That concludes today’s m.CDM Domestic News program.
The reports presented today were contributed by Ko Thit and Lu Lay.
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