The Siege of Myitkyina occurred in May–August 1944 during the Burma campaign of World War II.
During the Battle of Northern Burma and Western Yunnan, the American general Joseph Stilwell planned to capture the city of Myitkyina and its airstrip, which would enable the Allies to bring in supplies and aerial support for the Chinese and American forces. The Chinese 22nd Division advanced against Japanese-held bridges on 15 March and secured them after two months of fighting. Once the incessant rain stopped on 17 May, the Chinese Expeditionary Force and Merrill's Marauders assaulted the airstrip at Myitkyina. The surprised Japanese failed to destroy the airship with gasoline and retreated into Myitkyina proper. Two Chinese battalions accidentally engaged each other in fierce firefights both outside the city and in its streets, and a stalemate ensued throughout June. However, the capture of Mogaung by the British Chindits later that month cut off Myitkyina's supply lines. The US 36th Infantry Division soon arrived to support Stilwell's Sino-American forces, and, on 26 July, the Marauders captured the northern airfield at Myitkyina and weakened the Japanese garrison's resistance. On 3 August, General Genzo Mizukami rodered the town abandoned and killed himself in a literal compliance to "defend Myitkyina to the death," and Chinese and US forces gradually cleared the city and the surrounding area of Japanese troops. The Chinese Expeditionary Force's excessive casualties caused its disbandment, but Myitkyina's capture reopened the Ledo Road, connecting the Burma Road with China.
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