Thailand and Cambodia trade accusations as deadly border clashes enter third day
International pressure is mounting on both sides to reach a ceasefire.
Artillery fire and gunshots were reported near several border villages, expanding the area of the fighting that flared again Thursday after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers.
Cambodians sit on a tractor cart as they take refuge in Batthkoa primary school in Oddar Meanchey province, Cambodia (Heng Sinith/AP)
Cambodian and Thai officials claimed to have acted in retaliation.
Both countries recalled their ambassadors and Thailand closed its north-eastern border crossings with Cambodia.
Cambodian authorities reported 12 new deaths on Saturday, bringing its toll to 13, while Thai officials said a soldier was killed, raising the deaths to 20, mostly civilians.
The regional bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, is under growing pressure to defuse the situation between its two members.
During an emergency meeting on Friday, members of the UN Security Council called for de-escalation and urged ASEAN to mediate a peaceful solution.
The 800-kilometer (500-mile) frontier between Thailand and Cambodia has been disputed for decades, but past confrontations have been limited and brief.
The current tensions broke out in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a confrontation that created a diplomatic rift and roiled Thailand's domestic politics.
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