A Myanmar ethnic minority armed group clashed with junta troops in a ruby and gem-mining hub on Friday, resulting in civilian casualties from shelling and airstrikes, the group and residents told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) initiated attacks on junta forces earlier this week in the Mandalay region and neighboring Shan state, breaking a China-brokered cease-fire from January.
TNLA fighters have entered Mogok, a town famed for its wealth of rubies, sapphires, spinel, aquamarine and other semi-precious stones, Gen. Tar Bhone Kyaw told AFP, without providing further details.
AFP was unable to reach a junta spokesperson for comment.
Mogok residents told AFP the town had been hit by artillery shelling and airstrikes by military planes since fighting in the area started on Tuesday.
"As far as I know, four people, including two women, were killed yesterday because of artillery shelling," one 57-year-old Mogok resident, who did not want to give his name, told AFP.
He said he and his family were sheltering elsewhere after the roof of their home was damaged in an airstrike.
"We have no experience like this. It's the first-ever serious fighting in Mogok town."
Myanmar produces much of the world's rubies, and top-quality stones from Mogok – known as "pigeon's blood" for their deep red color – can fetch more per carat than diamonds.
The industry is notoriously opaque, with high-value rubies often smuggled over the border into Thailand or China to be sold directly to private buyers or made into jewelry.
For decades, Myanmar's junta and its opponents have taxed local miners for income.
Fighting was ongoing in Kyaukme town in neighboring Shan state, a local rescue worker told AFP on Friday.
At least 10 civilians had been killed and more than 20 wounded there since clashes broke out on Tuesday, he said.
The fighting has breached the China-brokered cease-fire that earlier this year ended weeks of fighting in Shan state between the military and the TNLA and two other allied ethnic armed groups.
In a surprise October offensive, the alliance seized swathes of territory and several lucrative trade crossings with China, dealing the junta its biggest blow since it seized power.
