Resistance groups form ‘Spring Revolution Alliance’
Nineteen resistance groups operating outside the command of the National Unity Government (NUG) have merged to form a new coalition of armed groups called the Spring Revolution Alliance (SRA), according to a statement released on Monday. Min Han Htet, the newly-appointed SRA spokesperson, told DVB that the NUG “welcomed” the establishment of the SRA to bring renewed energy and focus.
The SRA will cooperate with the NUG and ethnic armed organizations in the ongoing resistance to the 2021 military coup and the regime in Naypyidaw, which seized power during the coup. Min Han Htet added that the SRA has around 10,000 members from the 19 armed groups who will operate under a central command, via a leading committee, consisting of representatives from all 19 member armed groups.
The Institute for Strategy and Policy (ISP – Myanmar) stated in a July report that the Arakan Army (AA) is supporting at least 23 resistance groups in 61 out of Burma’s 330 townships. Nine of these 23 armed groups, including the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF) and the Bamar People’s Liberation Army (BPLA), have joined the SRA.
US journalist receives surgery after landmine injury in Myanmar
American photo and video journalist Collin Mayfield was embedded for one month-and-a-half with the People’s Defense Force (PDF) Zoland in Tedim Township, northern Chinland, and was on a routine patrol of a recently-abandoned police checkpoint near Mount Kennedy that had been seized by regime forces weeks earlier when when he stepped on a landmine on Nov. 18.
“I only lost two toes and part of my foot, fortunately. Whereas if I had stepped with my heel, I would have lost my entire foot and part of my leg. My hand got grazed, but none of the tendons were cut, so I can still use my fingers. I have a little bit more mobility in my hand every day,” he told DVB in an interview from his hospital bed in India.
Mayfield was evacuated to the Mizoram State capital of Aizawl, where he received surgery on his left foot at a hospital. Burma has become the world’s deadliest country for landmine and unexploded ordnance since the 2021 coup with the highest number of landmine casualties over the last two years, according to the Landmine Monitor Report 2025. Read more
A Burma national residing in Japan holds a placard of jailed State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi during a rally in Tokyo denouncing the regime’s 2025-26 elections and demanding the release of all political prisoners in Burma, outside of the embassy in Tokyo, Japan, on Dec. 14. (Credit: Reuters)
Naypyidaw says Aung San Suu Kyi ‘in good health’
The regime said that jailed State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi is “in good health” on Tuesday – one day after her son Kim Aris told Reuters he has received little information about his 80-year-old mother’s condition and fears she could die without him knowing. In an interview in Tokyo, Aris said that he had not heard from his mother in years and believes she is still being held by the regime in Naypyidaw.
Aung San Suu Kyi was detained during a military coup on February 1, 2021, that ousted her elected National League for Democracy (NLD) government and sparked a civil war. She is serving a 27-year sentence for charges including incitement, corruption and election fraud. “Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is in good health,” regime media reported. The regime statement offered no evidence or details about her condition.
Aris believes the regime’s 2025-26 elections, beginning on Dec. 28 and continuing into January 2026, could offer an opportunity to ease Aung San Suu Kyi’s plight, though many governments have dismissed the polls as a sham aimed at legitimizing military rule. Aris hopes the military might release his mother or move her to house arrest to appease critics ahead or after the vote. Read more
News by Region
ARAKAN—After at least 33 civilians were killed during airstrikes on the hospital in Mrauk-U Township, on Dec. 10, other hospitals have been unable to resume operations in fear of being targeted by the Burma Air Force, making it increasingly difficult for residents to access healthcare.
“Accessing care has become much more difficult for everyone [in Arakan],” a Rathedaung resident told Development Media Group (DMG) on the condition of anonymity. Rathedaung and Mrauk-U are 44-88 miles (70-141 km) north of the state capital Sittwe. Read more
SAGAING—Residents in Shwebo Township told DVB that four civilians were killed and three others were injured by an airstrike carried out by the Burma Air Force in Ywathigone village on Tuesday. Shwebo is located about 57 miles (91 km) northeast of the region’s capital Monywa.
“The victims were not from [Shwebo], they were traveling through to another village,” a Shwebo resident told DVB. Three buses were destroyed during the airstrike. Residents in Khin-U township reported airstrikes on the same day. It is 15 miles (24 km) north of Shwebo.
YANGON—The Western Yangon District Court handed an additional 10 years to journalist Sut Ring Pan, also known as Pu Noi Tsawm, on Dec. 2, bringing her total sentence to 13 years in prison, the Assistance Association for Myanmar-based Independent Journalists (AAMIJ) reported.
“She was tortured and beaten up during the interrogation for 22 days,” the AAMIJ shared on its official social media account. Later, Sut Ring Pan was transferred to Insein Prison. She had been reporting for over two years and has been held since her arrest on Sept. 29, 2024. Read more
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