Gunfire and explosions along the border between Myanmar and Thailand sparked panic among refugees.

More than 100 Burmese villagers fled to the Three Pagodas Pass in Thailand's Kanchanaburi province as fighting between the military junta and resistance forces erupted on May 10.

Gunshots and blasts were heard in the Burmese town of Payathonzu lasting around 40 minutes.

Police Colonel Paitoon Sriwilai, superintendent of Sangkhla Buri Police Station, led Border Patrol Police, soldiers, and local authorities to monitor the situation and assist the refugees.

Police Major General Rungroj Thagoonpunyasiri, deputy commissioner of Border Patrol Police, Police Colonel Banjong Ammarit, deputy commander of Kanchanaburi Provincial Police, and Police Colonel Kit Kongjatusak, superintendent of Border Patrol Police Sub-Division 13, also arrived at the scene.

Police Major General Rungroj said: 'The recent fighting has so far not affected Thailand, and there are currently no reports of damage, injuries or deaths.'

Myanmar has fallen into civil war following the removal of democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, with a military coup in 2021.

Soldiers responded with barbaric force on protesting civilians leading to widespread condemnation and financial sanctions. Rebel groups and civilian militias around the country have since been locked in a series of ongoing clashes with the ruling military.

Aung San Suu Kyi has since been jailed for 33 years on politically motivated charges and is likely to die behind bars unless the army is toppled - a tragic end the politician hailed by Barack Obama as an 'inspirational icon of democracy'.