Karen National Liberation Army

Karen National Liberation Army
Karen National Liberation Army
	Flag of the Karen National Liberation Army
Leaders	General officer commanding Saw Johnny; Lieutenant General Saw Baw Kyaw Heh
Dates of operation	1949 – present
Headquarters	Lay Wah; Manerplaw (until 1995)
Active regions	Kayah State; Kayin State; Tanintharyi Region; Bago Region; Mon State; Myanmar-Thailand border
Ideology	Karen nationalism; Self-determination; Federalism
Part of	Karen National Union
Allies	4K Coalition Karenni Army; Karenni National People's Liberation Front; Karenni Nationalities Defence Force; Other Allies; Karen National Defence Organisation; All Burma Students' Democratic Front; Arakan Army; Bamar People's Liberation Army; DKBA-5; Kachin Independence Army; New Mon State Party (Anti-Military Dictatorship); People's Defence Force; People's Revolution Alliance (Magway);
Opponents	State opponents Myanmar Tatmadaw; Border Guard Forces; Myanmar Police Force; Pyusawhti militias; ; Union of Myanmar (1988–2011); Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma (1962–1988); Union of Burma (1949–1962); Non-state opponents Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (1994–2010); Mon National Liberation Army (2016–2019);
Battles and wars	Internal conflict in Myanmar Karen conflict Battle of Insein; Maw Pokay incident; Fall of Manerplaw; Battle of Kawmoora; 2010–2012 Myanmar border clashes; ; Myanmar civil war (2021–present) Battle of Loikaw (2021); Battle of Kawkareik; Battle of Mese; Siege of Myawaddy; ; Thaw Le Hta offensive Battle of Theemuhta; Mae Kha Ta offensive; Battle of Lay Kay Kaw; Operation Aung Zeya; ;

The Karen National Liberation Army (Burmese: ကရင်အမျိုးသား လွတ်မြောက်ရေးတပ်မတော်; abbreviated KNLA) is the military branch of the Karen National Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Myanmar (formerly Burma). The KNLA has been fighting the Burmese government since 1960s as part of the Karen conflict, which has been ongoing since 1949.

The KNLA was reported to have had a strength of approximately 10,000 in 1970,^[8] 20,000 in 1980, 3,000 in 2001, 5,000 in 2006,^[9] 6,000 in 2012, and 7,000 in 2014.^[10] As of early 2021, the KNLA is estimated to have around 15,000 troops.^[11] The army is divided into seven brigades^[9] and a 'Special Force' reserved for special operations.^[12]

^ ^a ^b "KNU and NMSP agree to temporary ceasefire". The Myanmar Times. 14 March 2018. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
^ "Intense clash in Mese, Karenni State". Democratic Voice of Burma (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
^ "The 4K, the clash in Mese, and the military movement of Karenni State". People's Spring (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.
^ "The Emergence of the ULA/AA and Question of the Rohingya Crisis". 26 January 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
^ "Message from Lieutenant General Bao Jue Hai, Deputy Commander of the Karen National Liberation Army, to the Graduation Ceremony of the Burmese People's Liberation Army". 8 April 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
^ "PRA Magway". IPS Myanmar Peace Desk. 22 March 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
^ "Pyusawhti militia". Myanmar NOW. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
^ Cite error: The named reference mainsmith was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b "Yangon's anti-rebel offensive rages on". Asia Times Online. 18 October 2003. Archived from the original on 21 October 2003. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
^ Rotberg, Robert I. (June 1998). Burma: Prospects for a Democratic Future, by Robert I. Rotberg. Brookings Institution Press. ISBN 0815791690. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
^ "ชาติพันธุ์กระเหรี่ยง ต่อสู้เพื่อความฝัน "รัฐกะเหรี่ยง"". pptvhd36.com (in Thai). 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
^ 'Special Force' Joins KNLA on High Alert Archived 1 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine

[MMTimes14318-1] "KNU and NMSP agree to temporary ceasefire". The Myanmar Times. 14 March 2018. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2018.

[2] "Intense clash in Mese, Karenni State". Democratic Voice of Burma (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.

[3] "The 4K, the clash in Mese, and the military movement of Karenni State". People's Spring (in Burmese). 20 June 2023.

[4] "The Emergence of the ULA/AA and Question of the Rohingya Crisis". 26 January 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

[5] "Message from Lieutenant General Bao Jue Hai, Deputy Commander of the Karen National Liberation Army, to the Graduation Ceremony of the Burmese People's Liberation Army". 8 April 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.

[isp-6] "PRA Magway". IPS Myanmar Peace Desk. 22 March 2022. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2022.

[7] "Pyusawhti militia". Myanmar NOW. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2022.

[mainsmith-8] Cite error: The named reference mainsmith was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[atimes.com-9] "Yangon's anti-rebel offensive rages on". Asia Times Online. 18 October 2003. Archived from the original on 21 October 2003. Retrieved 1 April 2024.

[Rotberg-10] Rotberg, Robert I. (June 1998). Burma: Prospects for a Democratic Future, by Robert I. Rotberg. Brookings Institution Press. ISBN 0815791690. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2015.

[11] "ชาติพันธุ์กระเหรี่ยง ต่อสู้เพื่อความฝัน "รัฐกะเหรี่ยง"". pptvhd36.com (in Thai). 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2021.

[12] 'Special Force' Joins KNLA on High Alert Archived 1 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine

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Karen National Liberation Army
Flag of the Karen National Liberation Army
Leaders	General officer commanding Saw Johnny Lieutenant General Saw Baw Kyaw Heh
Dates of operation	1949 – present
Headquarters	Lay Wah Manerplaw (until 1995)
Active regions	Kayah State Kayin State Tanintharyi Region Bago Region Mon State^[1] Myanmar-Thailand border
Ideology	Karen nationalism Self-determination Federalism
Part of	Karen National Union
Allies	4K Coalition^[2]^[3] Karenni Army Karenni National People's Liberation Front Karenni Nationalities Defence Force Other Allies Karen National Defence Organisation All Burma Students' Democratic Front Arakan Army^[4] Bamar People's Liberation Army^[5] DKBA-5 Kachin Independence Army New Mon State Party (Anti-Military Dictatorship) People's Defence Force People's Revolution Alliance (Magway)^[6]
Opponents	State opponents Myanmar Tatmadaw Border Guard Forces Myanmar Police Force Pyusawhti militias^[7] Union of Myanmar (1988–2011) Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma (1962–1988) Union of Burma (1949–1962) Non-state opponents Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (1994–2010) Mon National Liberation Army (2016–2019)^[1]
Battles and wars	Internal conflict in Myanmar Karen conflict Battle of Insein Maw Pokay incident Fall of Manerplaw Battle of Kawmoora 2010–2012 Myanmar border clashes Myanmar civil war (2021–present) Battle of Loikaw (2021) Battle of Kawkareik Battle of Mese Siege of Myawaddy Thaw Le Hta offensive Battle of Theemuhta Mae Kha Ta offensive Battle of Lay Kay Kaw Operation Aung Zeya