Latest news with #military clash
Arab News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Over 130,000 people displaced as deadly Thailand-Cambodia clashes enter 2nd day
BANGKOK/PHNOM PENH: Thailand and Cambodia exchanged fire along their disputed border for a second day on Friday, as their worst fighting in years killed at least 15 people and displaced more than 130,000. The fighting between the Southeast Asian neighbors is the latest in a history of disputes that dates back more than a century, to when Cambodia's former colonial ruler France first mapped the 800-km shared land border. Both countries have blamed each other for starting a clash on Thursday near Prasat Ta Muen Thom, an ancient temple claimed by both nations. It quickly escalated from small arms fire to heavy shelling, with hostilities spreading to various locations along the border, marking a shift from usually brief confrontations that only rarely involved the use of weapons. At least 14 people were killed, 46 others injured and more than 138,000 displaced in Thailand, the Thai military said. In Cambodia, around 2,400 families have been evacuated after the fighting killed one person and injured five others in Oddar Meanchey province, Meth Meas Pheakday, spokeswoman for the provincial administration, said on Friday. Acting Thai PM Phumtham Wechayachai said Thailand has 'exercised utmost restraint' against provocations and chose 'peaceful means' in its responses. 'Our beloved Thailand is currently facing a severe threat from Cambodia … It is profoundly disappointing that the Cambodian side chose to initiate military force. Their actions blatantly violate international law and humanitarian principles through indiscriminate attacks on hospitals and civilian residential areas, extending more than 20 kilometers beyond the border … We consider these acts to be severe war crimes,' he said in a statement on Friday. 'I must emphasize that this incident is not a conflict between the peoples of our two nations, nor is it a declaration of war. It is a border clash undertaken to protect our sovereignty and respond to aggression.' Thailand has also responded to the alleged attacks by sending F-16 jets to strike targets in Cambodia. On Friday, Thailand had fired at seven sites in Cambodia, according to Maly Socheata, a spokeswoman for the Cambodian Ministry of National Defense. The clashes this week followed months of tension along the border, which began when troops exchanged fire in contested territory in May, killing a Cambodian soldier. Ties deteriorated further after Cambodia's powerful former leader Hun Sen leaked a private phone call with Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra about the border tensions, sparking public anger that led to her suspension from duties earlier this month. The crisis further escalated on Wednesday, when five Thai soldiers were injured by a land mine explosion near Prasat Ta Muen Thom, prompting both sides to recall their ambassadors. 'This tense situation cannot be ended swiftly with armed clashes; it needs diplomatic mechanisms and international law,' Vann Bunna, a Cambodian geopolitical expert, told Arab News. 'Since as of now there's no signal of negotiations, it's prompting the worst situation, leading to devastation of both human life and infrastructure. This not only provokes insecurity in both countries but also affects the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) security region geopolitically.' The last time that Cambodia and Thailand fired on each other's territories was during a three-year border conflict that ended in 2011 and killed 20 people on both sides of the border. The root of this week's border violence can be traced back to the 'discord between Thaksin and Hun Sen,' according to Pavin Chachavalpongpun, an associate professor at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Japan's Kyoto University Thaksin Shinawatra, Paetongtarn's father and the former prime minister of Thailand, had a decades-long personal relationship with the Cambodian strongman. 'The border has come many times in the past, but Hun Sen's decision to leak a personal conversation with Paetongtarn, which led to her suspension from serving as prime minister, was a clear betrayal of personal relationships,' Chachavalpongpun said in a statement. 'When the personal relationship between the leaders of both countries is broken, it (becomes) harder … to find a way out.'
BBC News
6 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Wetin cause tension between Thailand and Cambodia
Clash between Thailand and Commbodia military for one border wey di two kontris dey drag, don kill at least 12 pipo, Thai authority tok. Dis fight don carry di border argument, wey don dey occur for more dan 100 years between di two South Asia neighbours enta anoda level. Most of di people wey die na civilians from three of Thailand provinces according to Thai army. Di army also report say many oda pipo wunjure. But Cambodia neva tok weda dem to get casualties. On Thursday, di two sides exchange gunfire wit each side claiming say na di oda first find trouble. Di gbas gbos quickly enta anoda level as Thailand accuse Cambodia say e fire rockets, and diafore, dem fire air strikes on Cambodia military targets. Now Thailand don close dia border wit Cambodia, while Cambodia reduce dia relationship wit Thailand, wey e accuse say dem use "excess force." Di two don ask dia kontri pipo wey dey live near di border make dem pack comot. Thailand evacuate 40,000 pipo comot go safe place. "E serious no be small. We dey middle of evacuation," Sutian Phiwchan, on area pesin for di Ban Dan district for Thailand Buriram province near Cambodia border, tell BBC. Thai authorities say na 11 civilians, including one pikin wey dey eight years and anoda one wey dey 15 year, plus one military pesin. Cambodia and Thailand dey tok dia own version of wetin happun. Thailand claim say Cambodia military na dem first send drone to spy dia troop for border. Cambodia for dia own tok say Thai sojas cause fight wen dem break one agreement wen dem carry dem sef go near Khmer-Hindu temple wey dey near di border. Wetin dey cause fight? Dis gbas gbos between Cambodia and Thailand begin more dan one hundred years, wen French colonial masters divide di border for di two kontris. Tins officially enta anoda level of kasala for 2008, wen Cambodia try to register one 11 century temple wey dey for di area wey dem dey drag land, as World Heritage Site. Dis move cause serious protest for Thailand. Di two side don dey clash for years and soldiers and civilians don die for both sides. Dis lates tension begin gada momentum for May afta dem kill one Cambodia soldier for one clash. For di past two months, di two kontris impose border restriction on di oda. Cambodia stop to import tins like fruits and vegetables, plus stop importing electricity and internet service. Both kontris don also increase di number of soldiers wey dem get for di border. Thailand acting premier Phumtham Wechayachai say di kasala wey dem get wit Cambodia dey "delicate", and dem must to address am wit care and according to international law. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet im kontri want make dem solve dis mata peacefully - but add say im "no get choice" but to "respond wit armed force against armed aggression". Serious exchange of fire between di two kontris bin reduce sharply. But while e dey be like say di current fight fight fit no blow up turn to fill war, di two side currently lack leaders wey get enough strength and confidence to pull back from dis confrontation.
Russia Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Deadly clashes erupt on Cambodia-Thailand border
Thailand and Cambodia have exchanged strikes in a flare-up of violence over a disputed border area. At least a dozen people are reported to have been killed since clashes erupted on Thursday. Troops from both sides exchanged fire near the Ta Muen Thom temple, a centuries-old Khmer Hindu site located in a contested area claimed by both nations. The dispute stems from colonial-era French maps that left parts of the border ill-defined. Both countries have accused each other of opening fire first. The clash marks the deadliest escalation in the long-running territorial standoff in recent years. The day before, Thailand closed its northeast border crossing with Cambodia, withdrew its ambassador, and expelled the Cambodian envoy to protest a landmine blast that wounded five Thai soldiers. Cambodia has since said it will also be downgrading diplomatic relations with Thailand to their lowest level, and will be expelling the Thai ambassador as well as recalling all Cambodian staff from its embassy in Bangkok.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Civilians wounded as Thailand, Cambodia trade fire
At least three civilians were wounded in a Cambodian rocket strike on Thursday as its military clashed once again with Thailand over disputed territory. 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
South China Morning Post
6 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Thailand-Cambodia border clashes erupt with air strikes, civilian casualties
Thai and Cambodian forces were fighting in at least six locations along their disputed border on Thursday, resulting in the death of at least one Thai civilian and injuring soldiers, with Thailand also launching air strikes on its neighbour. Advertisement Both countries traded blame for the first clashes in weeks, which began at the flashpoint Ta Moan Thom temple in a disputed zone near Thailand's eastern frontier with Cambodia As fighting escalated in the remote area through Thursday morning, Thai fighter jets fired on Cambodian military positions, according to a Thai army statement. Six F-16 jets were deployed from Ubon Ratchathani province, hitting two 'Cambodian military targets on the ground', Thai army spokesman Ritcha Suksuwanon said. Cambodia's defence ministry condemned what it called reckless and brutal Thai military aggression, accusing its neighbour of opening fire on its troops and violating an agreement designed to de-escalate tension. A Cambodian BM-21 multiple rocket launcher is pictured in Preah Vihear province on Wednesday returning from the Cambodia-Thai border. Photo: AFP The Thai army said in an earlier statement that Cambodia had sparked the clash by firing Soviet-era BM-21 rocket launchers into Surin province. At least two Thai soldiers were wounded, Thai army deputy spokesman Colonel Ritcha Suksuwanont told reporters. Advertisement
