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In the dead of night last month, a resident listened to explosions in a nearby village, followed by warplanes circling the area. She ran out her home to see plumes of smoke in the distance.

"We were horrified. We feared the regime's jets might attack us too. So we seized our essentials – provisions and garments and ran into the woodlands around our village."

She visibly shakes as she tells the story of what happened on 26 November in her village, found in Myanmar's western Chin area. She belongs to countless residents who've evacuated their homes in the past few weeks following the Burmese military began a fierce campaign of air strikes, coupled with a land assault in insurgent-controlled zones throughout the nation.

Residents of Chin state have labeled the regime's newest campaign as the fiercest it has launched in more than three years. A large number of those uprooted have sought refuge in other regions of the state. Iang is among a group that made the border crossing into the Indian state of Mizoram. At present residing in a rundown badminton court in Vaphai village, the group's meager possessions they were able to carry are packed in plastic sacks.

An octogenarian has had to flee his home at the age of 80, staying in improvised dwellings in jungles for days, until at last making it to safety.

"We fear our own government. They are exceptionally brutal. Their military has invaded our and other villages in the past, they've detained individuals, mistreated them, and destroyed residences," he says.

It isn't easy to converse with Burmese civilians without restriction. Myanmar's ruling junta prohibits free access in the country for international reporters. It seized control of the country in a military takeover in February 2021, shortly after the last election.

Humanitarian Cost and Targeted Strikes

During its latest offensive, the junta in the past week attacked a medical facility in Rakhine State. Insurgent forces in Rakhine say at least 30 people were killed and more than 70 hurt.

An advocacy group reports that over recent months at least several educational institutions and a number of places of worship in Chin State have been attacked by military bombing, causing the death of 12 people comprising six children.

Reports indicate the shelling of a school in a village on 13 October. Two students perished as they were studying. The bombs ripped through their classrooms wounding more than a dozen other students.

This is the second time, a man and his young family – a wife and two young children - have been displaced. Previously in 2021, following the coup, their home was burnt down in an air strike. They started over in K-Haimual village. Now they're without a home once more.

"It's hard to express to explain how painful and hard it is and what a difficult decision it was to make to leave. But we had to do it to survive," he says.

A Disputed Vote

The National League for Democracy party, which won landslides in the two elections before the coup, is not participating as its key figures are in jail.

"This vote is unwanted. Because the military lacks the ability to govern our country. They only work for the benefit of their top officials. When the elected administration was in power, we experienced a taste of democracy. But now all we do is grieve and lament," says the refugee.

A resident believes the election will be rigged. "Should we cast a ballot for a party opposed to the military, I believe they will tamper with the results and claim we voted for them."

The poll will be held in stages, with a result anticipated around the end of January. Rebel groups have called it a farce.

Insurgent Frontline and Sacrifices

At a base of a prominent rebel group operating in the state, a leader states: "This election is only being held to perpetuate military dictatorship. It's not about the will of the people."

He highlights the areas where the fiercest combat is taking place. "There are columns of hundreds of soldiers trying to enter the northern part of Chin state from multiple fronts," he says. "The soldiers are being supported by air strikes, artillery fire and by unmanned aerial vehicles."

Entry to such bases is extremely rare. Situated in wooded hills, it is the center of the opposition to the junta in Chin state.

At a medical facility at the base, several injured fighters were admitted overnight and had to undergo hours of surgery. Some of them have had to undergo limb removals.

Many of them were just schoolboys when the coup occurred in 2021. Just about adults now, they've set aside their dreams to fight on the frontline against the junta.

"As the enemy was retreating we ran forward and I triggered a landmine. We were injured in the explosion. Then we were attacked from the air. The airstrikes make things very hard for us," explains a combatant. "I've lost a leg, should I lose my life I'm happy to make the sacrifice so that future generations have a better life."

The consequence of the ferocity of the latest offensive is visible in room after room at the hospital.

Nevertheless, it's the determination and resolve of tens of thousands of young people who joined the fight that have helped the rebels make rapid advances against a much more powerful rival.

Individuals such as 80-year-old the man hope that following the vote, the junta will pull back, and he will be able to return home.

"Yet I believe I will live to see democracy reestablished in Myanmar," he says. "I pray my children and grandchildren can see it some day."