MYANMAR’s military has been forced to abandon the strategically important town of Myawaddy on the eastern border with Thailand, according to local media.

Reports claim that hundreds of government troops have surrendered to fighters from an alliance of groups opposing the regime that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.

Thai PBS said more than 600 Myanmar nationals, including nearly 500 officers, were attempting to enter Thailand so that they could be rescued by air and return to serve the ruling junta.

Myawaddy borders Mae Sot in Thailand and is a major trading route between the two nations.

The Karen National Liberation Army allied with fighters from the People’s Defence Force has reportedly taken control of Myawaddy’s military base.

The fighters shared photos of weapons and ammunition they had liberated from government troops.

Deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch Phil Robertson told the Al Jazeera news network: “This is a major blow to the Myanmar military junta. 

“This is the largest and most important of the six official Thai-Burma border crossings.”  

Myanmar was previously known as Burma.

Mr Robertson added: “The military has really backed itself into a corner, waging a very unpopular war against the people of Myanmar who refuse to go back to a military dictatorship and all that that entails.” 

Since the military takeover Myanmar has been engulfed by a massive crisis that has led to the internal displacement of around 2.6 million people.

A third of the population, some 18.6 million people, are now estimated to be in humanitarian need. 

Children are bearing the brunt of the crisis, with six million in need as a result of displacement, interrupted healthcare and education, food insecurity and malnutrition, and protection risks including forced recruitment and mental distress.

The military has been forced to fight on multiple fronts and has responded by intensifying air strikes and announcing a policy of conscription.