Thai-Cambodian border clashes spread to previously peaceful areas
ANANTH BALIGA and YUICHI NITTA
PHNOM PENH/BANGKOK -- The cross-border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia escalated dramatically on Saturday, the third day of clashes, as the fighting spread from long-contested territory to hitherto peaceful regions.
Cambodia's Defense Ministry accused the Thais of an "unprovoked and premeditated act of aggression" at 5:02 a.m., "involving the firing of five heavy artillery shells into multiple locations in Ekphap Village, Thmor Da Commune, Veal Veng District, Pursat Province."

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Nikkei Asia
10 minutes ago
- Nikkei Asia
US and China aim to extend tariff truce, Chinese negotiator says
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson greets Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng at Rosenbad before trade talks between the U.S. and China in Stockholm on July 28. (TT News Agency/Fredrik Sandberg via Reuters) PAK YIU NEW YORK -- The U.S. and China are pushing to extend their tariff truce, the Chinese side said Tuesday after talks in Stockholm ended. Speaking to reporters, Chinese negotiator Li Chenggang said the two sides had in-depth, candid and constructive exchanges on major issues of mutual concern.


Yomiuri Shimbun
40 minutes ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japan Releases Guidelines for Stronger Space Defense as It Looks to Protect Its Satellites from Adversaries
The Defense Ministry unveiled on Monday its first-ever guidelines for space defense, meant to lay out the direction for strengthening these defenses. The guidelines clearly state that satellites operated by the Self-Defense Forces will be fully protected, as well as that companies will be ensured safe use of space. According to the guidelines, the government aims to build security in space through public-private partnerships, incorporating private-sector technology. The guidelines raise concerns about countries such as China and Russia, which are developing killer satellites that can attack other nations' satellites, and about the growing militarization of space. Given the increasingly severe security environment in space, the guidelines stress the need to improve defenses to allow for the safe operation of satellites and other assets run by the government, including the SDF, as well as by Japanese firms. One of the core tenants of the guidelines is the need for improved space domain awareness for monitoring the operational status, purpose and capabilities of other countries' satellites. The plan is to build the capacity to detect threats, such as killer satellites and anti-satellite weapons, and to protect Japan's satellites. The guidelines also note the importance of stable satellite communications for military intel, including for detecting and tracking missiles launched by enemy countries, and that such intel should be shared within the SDF. Additionally, the guidelines push for an improved ability to jam enemy countries' communications. To support these efforts, the guidelines insist on a proactive use of innovative technologies from the private sector, where commercial services have significantly advanced. The guidelines also emphasize the need to cultivate experts in the space field, recruit more outside talent and educate staff in the Defense Ministry and the SDF.


The Diplomat
4 hours ago
- The Diplomat
US Senator Urges SpaceX to Block Internet Access to Southeast Asian Scam Operations
A United States senator has urged SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to block Southeast Asia's transnational criminal syndicates from using the company's Starlink satellite internet service to run scams on American citizens. According to a report by Reuters, Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) wrote to Musk to alert him to recent reports that Starlink is being used by online scamming compounds based in Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. Such syndicates 'have apparently continued to use Starlink despite service rules permitting SpaceX to terminate access for fraudulent activity,' Hassan wrote in the letter to Musk, a copy of which was viewed by Reuters. She added that SpaceX 'has a responsibility to block criminals from using the service to target Americans.' She later followed this up with a post on social media that included a screenshot of the Reuters story and called publicly for the company to take action. In her letter to Musk, Hassan also cited statistics from the U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network showing that Southeast Asia-based scam operations have been responsible for defrauding U.S. citizens out of billions of dollars. Since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, mostly Chinese criminal syndicates have established a firm base of operations in mainland Southeast Asia, particularly in Cambodia and Myanmar. These factories of fraud have relied on a large indentured workforce – mostly ordinary people who have been attracted by promises of employment, only to be kept imprisoned and forced to operate various types of digital scams, often on pain of beatings, mistreatment, and torture, as detailed in a recent report by Amnesty International. In April, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime estimated that scamming operations had generated close to $37 billion globally in 2023. Hassan is not wrong to claim that Starlink has facilitated such operations, albeit unwittingly. The remote internet service has allowed crime groups to set up online scamming operations in remote parts of the region, particularly in peripheral parts of Myanmar run by rebel groups. Internet is widely available in most regions, but Starlink units provide a portable alternative that has allowed scam operations to relocate swiftly in response to crackdowns by the region's governments. In February, Thailand's government cut internet access, along with power connections and fuel supplies, to three regions of neighboring Myanmar in an effort to shut down the online scamming centers that had been established there. However, as one observer noted on X yesterday, any crackdown on Starlink operations in Myanmar might also imperil their use by Burmese civil society organizations and political groups resisting the rule of the military junta in Naypyidaw. These groups have used satellite internet services to circumvent the strict internet controls and widespread mobile phone blackouts imposed by the junta since it took power in a coup in February 2021. According to a report published in Frontier Myanmar in March, 'Opposition groups increasingly rely on foreign-owned networks, such as satellite Internet services, to bypass government control and maintain connectivity.' It added, 'If Musk (or Trump) imposes broad restrictions on Starlink due to concerns about online scamming and illicit businesses, it could have unintended consequences – severing critical communication channels for activists and resistance groups while doing little to curb criminal enterprises.'