The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in northern Myanmar claimed that it shot down a government military helicopter on May 3, 2021 during heavy fighting over a strategic position.
- Massive protests are continued against Myanmar’s military government in Kachin State and elsewhere in the country.
- The Kachin are one of several ethnic minorities who have allied themselves with the nationwide protest movement against the military’s February 2021 ouster of the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
- Suu Kyi was arrested and remains in detention.
- Myanmar’s ethnic minorities such as Kachin and the Karen have been fighting for decades against the central government for greater autonomy.
- The fighting in Kachin and Karen states has displaced more than 45,000 villagers.
