Civilian casualties are occurred and Thai-Myanmar border trade route is still suspended as a result of the fighting that started on the morning of December 1 in Kawkareik, Kayin State, sources said.

On December 1, there was a clash between joint forces of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and the security forces in Kawkareik, and on December 2, there were civilian deaths due to the explosion of heavy weapon shells in the residential areas of the town. A member of the social rescue team said that the residents have been evacuated.

"Due to the fighting in and around the town, heavy weapon shells landed on houses, there are people who are died and injured. We cannot rescue them, and we have to flee to the safety of our families," said a member of the Kawkareik Social Relief Association.

It is said that the people who stayed at home are fleeing in panic due to the sound of gunfire and the sound of bombardment by airplanes.

The Myawady border trade route was blocked by a barricade near Kaw Nue Village at the exit of Kawkareik town. Due to the intense fighting, the border trade route is still suspended.

A border trader said that the Myawady trade zone was attacked by a drop bomb on the night of December 1, so trade activities were suspended.

"Yesterday, when a bomb was dropped on the side of the zone, trade activities were stopped, and they don't dare to go into the zone. So far, trucks and vehicles are not allowed to travel on Dawna Taungkyaw Road," said a border trader.

Those who urgently need to travel from the Myawady border to the country are traveling with difficulty along the Myawady-Nyinaung-Wesham-Htawkkoko-Nabu-road.