188k evacuees urged to stay in shelters
Interior permanent secretary Unsit Sampuntharat said a total of 188,734 people have been evacuated to 770 shelters in seven provinces bordering Cambodia due to the recent border skirmishes.
In Si Sa Ket, there are 82,021 people in 435 shelters; Surin has 55,898 in 130 shelters; Buri Ram has 24,480 in 112 shelters; Ubon Ratchathani has 21,838 in 68 shelters; Sa Kaeo has 2,652 in 13 shelters; Trat has 1,621 in eight shelters; and Chanthaburi has 224 in four shelters.
Mr Unsit said he had been instructed by acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai to order all provincial governors and district chiefs to communicate clearly with evacuees that they must remain in designated shelters until official clearance is issued regarding their safety.
Authorities were also told to provide sufficient supplies of food, drinking water, and daily necessities to evacuees. Donation centres have been opened in affected provinces to receive aid from the public to support those in need.
"Once the security agencies confirm it is safe to return, the government will coordinate with relevant agencies to assist citizens in returning to their homes," Mr Unsit added.
Meanwhile, at the Ban Laem and Ban Phak Kad checkpoints in Pong Nam Ron district, Chanthaburi, thousands of Cambodian nationals have continued to cross the border back into Cambodia, citing uncertainty about the security situation, despite the ceasefire agreement between Thai and Cambodian forces.
Although the daily volume of returnees has decreased, many Cambodians are still lining up each day to return home. The Ban Laem checkpoint opened as usual at 9am, with regular immigration and special processing lanes operating smoothly.
At the Ban Phak Kad checkpoint, the number of crossings dropped from several thousand the previous day to only a few hundred Tuesday.
One Cambodian worker said that while his hometown was closer to Ban Laem, he chose to cross at Ban Phak Kad to avoid overcrowding. He welcomed the ceasefire efforts but remained unconvinced they would last. Also Tuesday, the Election Commission voted to postpone indefinitely the by-election for Constituency 5 in Si Sa Ket, scheduled for Aug 10.
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