Rebel forces have trained hundreds of mercenaries in Kayah State to join the resistance war against the Myanmar military.

The Karenni Army - the armed wing of the Karenni National Progressive Party - held a closing ceremony in Loikaw town on February 5 after enlisting the 356 soldiers into their ranks.

Supreme Army Leader Major General B2 gave a speech and led the rites as the 310 men and 46 women were sworn in.

Some of the troops will be sent to aid the People's Defence Force in Loikaw. Other platoons will reportedly be stationed between the states of Shan and Kayah to intercept the military junta's supply route.

A skirmish allegedly erupted on the same day, when the Karenni Army's third battalion ambushed Burmese soldiers delivering supplies five kilometres from the Thai-Myanmar border near Mae Hong Son province.

Fighting between the armed militias and the Burmese military has intensified amid the political turmoil in Myanmar caused by the ousting of former leader Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.

Around the country, more than 1,300 civilians are said to have been killed during military crackdowns on protests.