Civilians wounded as Thailand, Cambodia trade fire
Fighting erupted near two temples on the border between the Thailand's Surin province and Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey. Both governments blame the other for triggering the fresh clash.
The two nations are locked in disagreement over the Emerald Triangle — an area where the borders of both countries and Laos meet, and home to several ancient temples. The neighboring countries have been arguing over where the border should be drawn for years.
A livestream video from Thailand's side showed people running from their homes and hiding in a concrete bunker as explosions sounded.
How did the clashes break out?
Thailand's army has blamed Cambodian forces for opening fire first, claiming that Cambodia targeted civilians with two BM-21 rockets which hit a community in Surin's Kap Choeng district.
It said clashes began when a unit guarding the Ta Muen temple heard a Cambodian drone overhead. Thai soldiers then found six armed Cambodian soldiers, including one carrying a rocket-propelled grenade, approaching a barbed-wired fence in front of the Thai post.
Thailand claimed its solders shouted to warn them, but Cambodian forces opened fire toward the eastern side of the temple close to the Thai base.
Initial reporting suggested that at least three people were injured and that two people had been killed, though it wasn't immediately clear if the deaths were military or civilians.
Meanwhile, Cambodia said its neighbor had violated a peace agreement and opened fire on the Cambodian army.
"The Thai military violated the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Cambodia by launching an armed assault on Cambodian forces stationed to defend the nation's sovereign territory," Defense Ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said in a statement.
"In response, the Cambodian armed forces exercized their legitimate right to self-defense, in full accordance with international law, to repel the Thai incursion and protect Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity."
The clashes come a day after Thailand recalled its ambassador from Cambodia and said it would expel his counterpart, after a second Thai soldier lost a limb to a landmine in a week. Bangkok alleged the landmines were recetly placed in the disputed region.
Thailand deploys fighter jet: reports
Thailand's military deployed an F-16 fighter jet, the nation's army said on social media, as the dispute escalated. The forces claimed the F-16 had destroyed a Cambodian military target.
On the other side of the border, Cambodia's defense ministry said Thai fighter jets had dropped two bombs on a road.
Thailand's embassy in Phnom Penh urged its nationals to leave "as soon as possible" in a Facebook post.
Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNN
21 minutes ago
- CNN
Last look: Can the world afford a new global arms race?
Fareed explains how military spending is surging globally — and how it's forcing countries to make tough decisions on how to pay for it.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Leaked memo from Hegseth's brother calls for US army to help with deportations nationwide ‘for years to come': report
A leaked memo from the Department of Homeland Security suggests that the Trump administration is considering using the U.S. military to boost its ongoing mass deportation agenda, while acknowledging the deployment of troops in Los Angeles earlier this year wasn't 'perfect,' according to a new report. The memo was allegedly written by DHS senior adviser Phil Hegseth, the brother of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The New Republic published the texts on Saturday. President Donald Trump has already used U.S. military personnel in his aggressive deportation campaign. In June, Trump nationalized approximately 5,000 National Guard members and sent them to LA to push back against protesters demonstrating against Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raids in their neighborhoods. In addition to the National Guard members, Trump also sent 700 U.S. Marines to the city to stomp out the "violent insurrectionist mob." Most of the military members sent to LA have since been pulled out of the city. The DHS memo outlines a June 21 meeting between senior DHS and Pentagon officials, according to The New Republic, and suggests that U.S. military members will be needed to carry out Trump's deportation efforts for "years to come." Top level officials from both agencies, including Hegseth and acting ICE commissioner Todd Lyons, were listed as participants, the outlet reported. The memo advises departments on how they can "better plan for national security and illegal immigration" via three action items, including utilizing the Pentagon's "nationwide operational planning capabilities." "The U.S. military leadership (the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and NORTHCOM) need to feel — for the first time — the urgency of the homeland defense mission. They need to understand the threat, what's at stake, and the political importance the administration has placed on this issue," the memo reads. Later in the memo, it acknowledges that the troop deployment to LA didn't go the way the Trump administration had hoped. It does suggest that they are expecting similar operations to be carried out in the future, however. 'Everyone here is also aware of our joint work in L.A.,' it states. 'It hasn't been perfect, and we're still working through best practices together, but I think it's a good indicator of the type of operations (and resistance) we're going to be working through for years to come.' The Independent has requested comment from the Department of Homeland Security.
Wall Street Journal
4 hours ago
- Wall Street Journal
Pentagon Snub Rattles Cybersecurity Conference Circuit
A Pentagon move to pull its officials out of a policy think tank event is sending a chill across the cybersecurity trade-show circuit, where senior military and national security leaders often appear as keynote speakers and panelists. By barring its officials from participating in cybersecurity conferences, the Defense Department would imperil critical threat-intelligence sharing between public and private cybersecurity experts, among other issues, event organizers, vendors and attendees say.
