16 March 2026 – State Security and Peace Commission (SSPC) forces—representing Myanmar’s military junta—launched intensified checkpoint inspections on Pin Lon Road in Kalay town of Sagaing Region today after 1:00 pm, according to a local resident.
A multi-agency team is stopping and searching passersby, leading to arrests and raising concerns about preparations for forced conscription amid the junta’s ongoing nationwide recruitment drive.
Residents are urged to exercise caution, avoid the Pin Lon traffic point area, and stay in safer locations until the situation stabilizes.
Kalay, also spelled Kale, a strategic township in Sagaing Region near the Chin State border, has seen persistent tensions since the 2021 coup. The area hosts active resistance from local People’s Defence Forces (PDFs) and has experienced frequent junta operations, including airstrikes, reinforcements, and clashes along routes like Kalay-Tedim.
The military junta, rebranded under the SSPC in 2025, has aggressively enforced conscription since February 2024, with estimates suggesting over 90,000–100,000 individuals forcibly recruited in multiple batches. Reports indicate abusive tactics, including abductions of young men at checkpoints, short training periods, and deployment of conscripts to frontlines—often as porters or human shields—with high desertion rates.
In Kalay specifically, prior accounts from early 2026 describe escalated abductions of military-age youth by police, Pyu Saw Hti militias, and junta forces, with daily arrests and brief detentions for ransom or conscription.
This latest checkpoint activity aligns with broader patterns of intensified recruitment in Sagaing and other regions, where household lists are collected and young people targeted amid the junta’s manpower shortages. – Reporting by Daniel
