October 22
More than 10,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) who fled their villages amid the junta’s military activities in Kale Township, Sagaing Region, are urgently in need of emergency food assistance.
The Kale Town People’s Struggle Steering Committee announced on October 21 that more than 10,000 villagers along the Kale–Gangaw Road have been displaced as a large number of junta troops advance along the route.
The IDPs include the elderly, pregnant women, and children, all of whom urgently need food, healthcare assistance, and other basic necessities, the committee said.
“Right now, the displaced people are taking shelter in the forests, areas that are hard for the junta’s troops to reach, but we can’t say they’re completely safe. The displaced population comprises more than 1,000 households, totaling over 10,000 people. Given the current situation, it’s not possible to set up an IDP camp, so they’re living in temporary, makeshift shelters for now,” a committee member said.
The committee has also set up an emergency response task force to provide the IDPs with assistance as effectively as possible.
The committee has urged Myanmar citizens abroad, local partners, resistance groups both inside Myanmar and overseas, ethnic organizations, and international agencies to support the displaced population in Kale Township.
The committee assured that arrangements have been made to securely transfer funds to support the IDPs through NUG Pay and SDB Bank accounts.
On October 16, the junta airlifted a large number of troops to the town of Kale, the administrative center of Kale Township. The forces then launched operations to reclaim resistance-held areas along the Kale–Tamu Road north of Kale Town and the Kale–Gangaw Road south of the town.