SMOKE rises from the Myanmar army camp, near the border with Thailand.—AP BANGKOK: Ethnic Karen guerillas said they captured a Myanmar army base on Tuesday near the border with Thailand, representing a morale-boosting action for those opposing the military’s takeover of the country’s civilian government in February. Myanmar’s military staged air strikes several hours later on villages in territory controlled by the Karen forces, said a guerilla spokesman, a senior Thai official and a relief worker. A spokesman for the Karen National Union, the minority’s main political group seeking greater autonomy from Myanmar’s central government, said its armed wing attacked the base at 5am and burned it down just after dawn.