Myanmar Junta Says Over 500 Rebels Have Surrendered
Last update: March 19, 2026
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Resistance group disputes account, calling ceremony a staged propaganda event.
More than 500 opposition guerrillas in Myanmar have surrendered to the ruling military, the junta said, though a resistance faction dismissed the event as propaganda.
Myanmar has been in civil war since the 2021 coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. A mix of pro-democracy fighters and ethnic armed groups have since taken up arms against military rule.
In Mandalay, hundreds of individuals were seen at a military base laying down weapons. Brigadier General Aung Htay told them they had been misled and urged them to return to civilian life.
Some of those present wore uniforms linked to the Mandalay People’s Defence Force, a key pro-democracy militia. However, a spokesperson for the group denied any mass surrender, saying such events are rare and suggesting inconsistencies in uniforms indicated staging.
One individual at the ceremony said he joined the resistance out of opposition to the regime but later became disillusioned and returned.
Recent ceasefires brokered with support from China involving major ethnic armed groups have weakened resistance forces around Mandalay, with analysts saying Beijing is seeking to maintain stability by backing the military authorities.
