Hundreds of Burmese locals fled to Thailand on Thursday amid clashes between the Myanmar military and insurgents.

Thai authorities said that more than 700 locals had arrived in the town ofo Mae Sot in Tak province amid fighting between the rebel group Karen National Union (KNU) and government-backed soldiers on December 16.

There are now believed to be more than 2,500 Burmese refugees sheltering across the border in Thailand.

Ye Min from the rights group Aid Alliance Committee said they were ‘providing food and assistance’ to those who had fled their villages.

Fighting erupted in February this year when military chiefs ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Protests spread across the country as residents voiced their anger at the new regime.