Bangkok: Sixty-two Myanmar junta soldiers fled to Thailand after rebels attacked checkpoints near the Myanmar-Thailand border, local media reported on Saturday. The soldiers sought refuge in Thailand after their posts in Myanmar's Karen State were captured by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), an armed ethnic group.

According to Anadolu Agency, Thai forces allowed the soldiers, 11 of whom were injured, to cross into the Phop Phra district of Tak province, where they were disarmed. The soldiers reported that the attack resulted in the deaths of 18 of their colleagues.

The KNLA, one of Myanmar's larger insurgent armies, has been engaged in a struggle for the self-determination of the Karen people since 1949. The Karen people, a collection of ethnic groups, have primarily resided in the conflict-torn Karen State in Myanmar's south and southeast.