Burmese villagers fled into Thailand as clashes erupted along border towns.

Some 250 residents from Myanmar sought shelter as fighting between the junta and resistance forces intensified in Myawaddy on April 18.

The Burmese army reportedly fired artillery and deployed a Yak-130 fighter jet to a military base around a mile from Tak province in Thailand.

Karen army resistance soldiers on April 20 seized the encampment, forcing residents in the area to flee across the border.

Thai soldiers, rangers, police, and the local government said they have deployed personnel to provide security and humanitarian aid.

Authorities said all villagers were safe but scared.

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'.