CNI News
23 August 2025
Military and political observers are questioning the reasons behind the Arakan Army (AA) fighting alongside the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) against the Shanni Nationalities Army (SNA) in an effort to control the Indawgyi region, where the majority of the population is Shanni.
On August 16, 2025, about 200 KIA/AA joint troops began an offensive on SNA camps in the villages of Ma Mong Kaing and Maing Naung to gain control of the Indawgyi region.
After losing some of their camps, the SNA launched a counter-offensive on August 17, successfully retaking the lost camps.
U Sai Htay Aung, the chairman of the Tai-Leng (Shanni) Nationalities Development Party, told CNI News that the AA might have joined the battle because the KIA requested military assistance. Another possibility is that the KIA granted the AA jade mining rights, which obligated them to join the fighting.
"The AA is an ally of the KIA, so they might have joined because the KIA requested military assistance. The KIA also reportedly gave the AA jade mining rights in areas they control, like the Hpakant region, which may have made their participation mandatory. Also, the AA attacked Ma Mung Kaing village on August 16th and then retreated on the 17th. We heard that the AA was the first to withdraw. If that's what the AA said, we're happy about it. The news we received is that they didn't want to fight their fellow ethnic group and were the first to withdraw. The SNA also maintained a spirit of brotherhood with other ethnic groups, so when the AA was the first to retreat, it showed that there's an ethnic brotherhood. So, there is no reason for us not to live in peace and harmony," he said.
The Indawgyi region
The AA is an Arakanese armed group that was founded by the KIA in April 2009 in Laiza, Kachin State. The AA's leaders still reside in Laiza. Since its founding, the AA has participated in joint operations with the KIA.
CNI attempted to contact the AA for comment on their joint attack with the KIA against the SNA in the Indawgyi region but was unable to reach them.
The Indawgyi region is located in Mohnyin Township, Kachin State, and is home to a majority Shanni population.
According to Indawgyi locals, while the KIA was in control of the region, they oppressed the local population in various ways, including going house to house to arrest and conscript young people and collecting taxes. In July 2025, the Shanni armed group, SNA, penetrated and took control of the Indawgyi region.
Currently, the KIA is fighting alongside PDF groups to attack the SNA in the townships of Banmauk and Homalin in the Sagaing Region, which are under the SNA's control, in an effort to seize those areas.
