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Myanmar lost a military stronghold near the Chinese border, the military government confirmed this week, marking a major setback for the junta as it struggles to repel armed rebel groups following its coup in 2021, Reuters reported.

Late last month, the rebel Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) group announced it had taken control of the Northeast Regional Military Headquarters in Lashio, Shan State.

It said that more than 470 junta soldiers were wounded and their family members were evacuated from the headquarters hospital. At least nine people were reportedly killed, but neither side has provided an exact death toll, Radio Free Asia noted.

On Saturday, junta officials confirmed that they had lost communication with senior officers in the base and that some military personnel were arrested by the insurgents.

State-backed media accused MNDAA fighters of attacking a military hospital in the base and killing civilians, staff and relatives of junta troops.

This was the first time Myanmar’s ethnic minority insurgents captured a military headquarters.

Myanmar has 14 such regional military command posts, with analysts explaining that the loss of the Lashio base marks a critical defeat of the junta and underscores its vulnerabilities.

Jason Tower from the United States Institute of Peace told Reuters that the fall of Lashio could mark “the beginning of the end” for military rule under junta chief Min Aung Hlaing.

Myanmar’s army took power in February 2021 after ousting the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi. Since then, the military has faced widespread unrest and armed resistance from the country’s ethnic minorities.

Ethnic minority insurgents, such as the MNDAA, have been fighting against the military for decades. Since the coup, they have been joined by pro-democracy activists to form a three-party rebel alliance, and scored a series of significant victories against the military in different parts of the country.

The group’s activities have raised concerns in Beijing, given their proximity to the Chinese border.

China has previously intervened to mediate a ceasefire but has recently urged dialogue and an end to hostilities following the collapse of the ceasefire agreement in June.