Minister of Defence
Yee Mon announced on 16 April 2021 that NUG would establish an armed wing that would cooperate with various
ethnic armed organisations to launch an armed revolution against the
junta. On 5 May 2021, NUG announced the formation of the PDF as a "forerunner of the federal armed forces". It also stated that the PDF was formed in response to the violence happening throughout the country. On 28 May 2021, NUG released a video of the PDF's graduation ceremony, announcing that the armed wing was ready to challenge the junta's forces. On 7 September 2021, the NUG announced the launch of the "
People's Defensive War" against the military junta, and urged the citizens to revolt against the junta in every corner of the country. On 7 September 2022, NUG acting president
Duwa Lashi La gave a speech on the one-year anniversary of the defensive war. He stated that the PDF suffered from 1,500 casualties within one year after the declaration, and that the junta was losing their territorial control. The NUG also stated that 2023 would be an important year as they would "successfully end the revolution in that year and six battlefronts would be opened to do so". Starting from 2023, local PDFs have been reportedly planning to perform coordinated attacks against the regime as a "Phase 2 of the NUG's one year plan". On 5 May 2023, the NUG stated that around 300 battalions and columns have been established nationwide, as well as local PDFs in 250 townships. Duwa Lashi La also stated that the combating strength of the PDF is "now greater than that of the regime", and the PDF soldiers need equipment to defend against the regime's airstrike attacks. On 1 June 2023, the NUG announced the formation of the 5101st Battalion, the first military battalion based in Yangon Region.
Yangon Region clashes On 14 August 2021, the PDF ambushed six heavily armed policemen who were travelling along the
Yangon Circular Railway. Five were killed. A sixth was injured but survived. Four automatic rifles were seized.
Shan State clashes The PDF clashed with the
Tatmadaw in
Muse on 23 May 2021, killing at least 13 members of Myanmar's security forces. Another clash happened in the town of Moebyel, in which 20 members of the police force were killed. On 20 January 2024, the
Tatmadaw and the
Pa-O National Army (
PNA) attempted to confiscate the
Pa-O National Liberation Army (
PNLA)'s weapons. A few days later, firefight broke out in
Hopong Township. On 24 January 2024, the
PNLA, local
PDF forces, and the
KNDF attacked the PNO/Junta-controlled town of
Hsi Hseng. The
Tatmadaw responded with airstrikes and shelling. PNLA retaliated with KNDF and local PDF forces and attacked the town of
Hsi Hseng,
Shan State eventually capturing it on 26 January 2024.
Chin State clashes Chin State saw some of the earliest armed resistance. Clashes were reported initially in late March 2021. Armed with traditional tumi guns, ethnic Chin inflicted casualties on the Tatmadaw. In early April 2021,
Chinland Defense Force (
CDF) was established. The Tatmadaw saw heavy casualties in clashes with
Mindat branch of the CDF in late April and May 2021. CDF Mindat briefly occupied the town, but was forced to withdraw when the Tatmadaw used civilians as shields.
Chin National Army, the existing Chin armed organisation, various township branches of the
CDF and
Chin National Defence Force (an armed Chin organization formed after the coup) came together to form a joint defence coordination body called Chinland Joint Defense Committee (CJDC). The total strength of active personnel under the command of CJDC was approximated to be around 13,000. From August to October 2021, it was reported that at least 40 clashes occurred between junta troops and CDF. CJDC claimed that at least 1,029
Tatmadaw soldiers were killed in the clashes and lost 58 of their own in 2021.
Karenni State clashes Karenni PDF launched attacks in
Demoso and
Bawlakhe townships, killing at least twenty
Tatmadaw soldiers and police and burning down three outposts on 26 May 2021. The Tatmadaw retaliated by shelling residential areas. On 31 May 2021,
Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (
KNDF) was formed as a merger of scattered PDF groups in the
Karenni state and some local
Ethnic Armed Organisations. The main organisation was
Karenni National Progressive Party.
Sagaing clashes The PDF, along with the
Kachin Independence Army, began assaults on the Tatmadaw positions in
Katha,
Sagaing around the end of May 2021, killing eight regime soldiers and injuring thirteen. On 24 and 26 June 2021, combined PDF and
KIA forces clashed with the
Tatmadaw, reportedly killing at least 44 regime troops. On 15 January 2022, a combined force of PDF and
All Burma Students' Democratic Front attacked two Tatmadaw ships approaching
Katha from
Shwegu using rocket-propelled grenades. This confrontation marks the first time
ABSDF had engaged the
Tatmadaw since the beginning of the
coup, entering a war against the regime and openly siding with the PDF. On 1 February 2023, a local PDF shot down a Tatmadaw
Mi-17 helicopter during a clash in
Shwepyiaye,
Homalin Township. On 8 and 9 February, a coalition of local PDFs, under the leadership of the NUG's defence ministry, launched an attack on "15 military targets in the region", killing 44 and injuring 8 regime troops. During the attack, 2 PDF soldiers were killed and 13 were injured. On 19 March 2023, the Chindwin Attack Force shelled the headquarters of the Northwestern Command in
Monywa, as the junta leader
Min Aung Hlaing was reportedly visiting there. Five out of eight mortar shells exploded on the checkpoint gates, and the regime troops are said to have retaliated with chemical bombs. On 3 November 2023, the PDF and the
KIA launched an offensive in
Kawlin. The offensive took four days, ending with the defending junta troops surrendering with the white flag. On 6 November, the NUG announced that they were able to seize the town and posted a photo of the PDF flag being flown at the Kawlin District Administration Department. This was the first district-level town that the PDF was able to take over. In December 2023,
KNA and PDF seized a base in
Tamu township,
Sagaing Region. In the evening of 3 February 2024, the
Tatmadaw forces began launching offensives from the north and south of
Kawlin in order to recapture the town. The Tatmadaw was also reportedly using the
Howitzer cannon and air support during the offensive. On 13 February, the PDF troops had to retreat and the junta was able to recapture the town.
Mandalay clashes In early June 2021, PDF activities increased significantly across the
Mandalay District, with multiple violent clashes with pro-junta security forces reported in
Mandalay City and surrounding townships. On 1 June, a PDF fighter shot two soldiers, killing one, outside of a high school that had been forced to re-open by junta authorities despite a nationwide boycott of government-run schools. The leader of the PDF in
Mandalay, Bo Nat Khat, also claimed responsibility for recent bombings in five townships. The military junta called the PDF attacks acts of
terrorism. On 22 June, the
Tatmadaw forces in armoured vehicles raided a PDF base in
Chanmyathazi Township, resulting in the deaths of two fighters and six arrests, according to the PDF. The Tatmadaw-owned media sources claimed that four PDF fighters were killed and eight arrested, while some security forces were injured. Later that day, the Mandalay PDF spokesperson announced that the group had "declared war" on the junta. On 23 April 2023, the NUG Defence Ministry stated that clashes between the Mandalay PDF and the junta occurred from 5 to 22 April. These clashes were in
Pyin Oo Lwin and
Nawnghkio, and resulted in the deaths of around 100 regime troops and 11 PDF troops.
Natogyi clashes In February 2025, clashes were reported in
Natogyi Township in the Mandalay Region, where forces of the People’s Defence Forces (PDF) engaged a column of the
Tatmadaw troops. According to statements from the PDF, at least 22 soldiers were killed and eight were captured during an ambush. The attack reportedly targeted a military unit of around 50 personnel from
Light Infantry Division 99 operating between Mya Taung and Sein Pan Khan village. Despite the use of air support, including a
Mi-35 helicopter, resistance forces stated that they were able to seize weapons and ammunition from the troops. The operation was described by the PDF’s No. 1 Military Region as part of broader coordinated activities with local resistance groups. It was also linked to the
Myingyan District Special Operation, which had been launched earlier as a coordinated campaign in central Myanmar’s plains.
Other activities In early June 2021, a combined force of five armed groups; the
Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (
DKBA) splinter group, PDF,
KNU/KNLA Peace Council (
KPC),
Karen National Defence Organisation (
KNDO) and a Karen
Border Guard Force (
BGF) splinter group clashed with the
Tatmadaw and Karen
BGF in Phlu village,
Karen state. Brigadier General Saw Kyaw Thet, commander-in-chief of the
DKBA splinter group stated that the five armed groups are cooperating throughout Karen. Following this incident, the
Tatmadaw forces burned down the village, killing at least two. On 15 March, in an interview published by
Irrawaddy Media, "If the last six months of the people's resistance were to be considered as the first stage of the revolution, at this stage the PDF comrades will be involved in guerrilla warfare," he said. "They have been able to carry out effective war operations. They were able to destroy the enemy force on a daily basis. Now our PDFs have taken control of many rural areas." On 27 March 2023, during the
Armed Forces Day ceremony, the Yangon Revolution Force performed a cursing ritual by using a cutout of Min Aung Hlaing's head. The YRF said they performed this ritual so that "the regime would suffer for what they have done to the civilians in northern Myanmar and they quickly reach their demise". On 11 April 2023, in the middle of a clash between the Mandalay PDF and the Tatmadaw, the PDF soldiers encountered
Mong Pong Sayadaw, who was going to
Minelon Subtownship. The PDF soldiers stopped shooting, and the Buddhist monk reportedly gave them lucky charms. On 22 April, the Mandalay PDF released the video footage of the encounter and stated that they had escorted him to safety. In the morning of 28 January 2024, the flag of the PDF was hoisted at the Circular Road around
Kandawgyi Park in
Pyin Oo Lwin. A local commandant was summoned by the junta and reportedly punished due to this incident. Security in
Pyin Oo Lwin has been intensified, since the PDF has been planning to launch offensives in the town and it also has military service academies such as the
DSA and
DSTA. == Structure ==