Thai soldier wounded in Cambodia border landmine blast

CNA

4 days ago

BANGKOK: A landmine blast on Thailand's border wounded a soldier on Tuesday (Aug 12), the military said, accusing Cambodia of planting new explosives in breach of a truce between the countries.
Five days of clashes erupted last month as ground troops, artillery and jets waged cross-border combat that killed at least 43 and saw more than 300,000 civilians flee.
The Southeast Asian neighbours have a dispute over parts of their border dating back more than a century, but July's fighting was sparked by Thailand's claims that Cambodia planted landmines that wounded its troops.
The Royal Thai Army said another landmine detonated around 9am (10am, Singapore time), blasting off a soldier's leg as they were on patrol near the disputed Prasat Ta Muen Thom temple in Surin province.
"Cambodia continues to covertly plant landmines as an ongoing threat," said a statement from Thai army spokesman Winthai Suvaree.
"This repeated incident shows bad intentions from the Cambodian side, which goes against the ceasefire agreement," he added. "The Thai military may have to exercise our right to defend ourselves."
The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, a government body, has previously issued a statement denying that any new mines had been laid.
The border area is still littered with such explosives from past decades.
The blast followed a mine explosion on Saturday in neighbouring Sisaket province that the Thai army said had wounded three other troops.
Thailand and Cambodia have traded allegations of truce-breaking skirmishes since the peace pact came into effect on Jul 29. Both sides last week pledged to prolong the ceasefire.
The deal was brokered by Malaysia's prime minister and Chinese mediators as well as United States President Donald Trump - who described himself on social media as "the President of PEACE" after the truce was agreed.