BANGKOK - Thousands more refugees could be sent flooding into Thailand as Burma's ruling junta launches a fresh offensive against ethnic Karen held territory, border sources said yesterday. "Fierce clashes" were taking place in south eastern Burma, where the Karen National Union controls a 200 kilometre strip of territory along the border with Thailand, a Burmese opposition group said.
The latest skirmishes are taking place south of the area where the junta last week overran territory and a key base of the KNU, the last major rebel group fighting the Rangoon authorities. Thousands of civilians in the area - many already internally displaced due to a government programme of forced relocation - yesterday were poised to flee into Thailand the Bangkok office of the All Burma Students' Democratic Front said.
The US Department of State issued a statement yesterday urging Rangoon to halt its military operations against the Karen, which it said were affecting mostly civilians. "We are also deeply disturbed by the forcible conscription of thousands of civilians to serve as porters for the Burma Army in its offensive," the US, statement said.