Thailand said on Monday it carried out airstrikes on Cambodian positions after renewed fighting broke out along their disputed border, with both sides accusing each other of violating a fragile ceasefire brokered by US President Donald Trump.
A Thai army spokesperson confirmed that one Thai soldier was killed and eight wounded as clashes intensified around 5 am local time (2200 GMT). Air support was deployed to strike Cambodian military targets, the spokesperson added.
Thailand’s Air Force accused Cambodia of mobilising heavy weapons, repositioning combat units, and preparing support elements, warning that these moves risked escalating the conflict.
‘These developments prompted the use of air power to deter and reduce Cambodia’s military capabilities,’ it said.
Cambodia’s defence ministry countered that Thai forces launched dawn attacks at two locations following days of provocative behaviour. It maintained that Cambodian troops did not retaliate.
Former Cambodian premier Hun Sen called the Thai military ‘aggressors’ and urged Cambodian troops to keep restraint. ‘The red line for responding has already been set,’ he warned on Facebook, without explaining further.
Authorities said three Cambodian civilians have been seriously injured so far.
Ceasefire Under Strain
Border tensions, which date back more than a century, escalated earlier this year and erupted into a five-day conflict in July, killing at least 48 people and displacing around 300,000. A ceasefire was later brokered by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Trump, with an expanded peace agreement signed in Kuala Lumpur in October.
But Thailand suspended implementation of the truce last month, following a landmine blast that maimed a Thai soldier. Bangkok has repeatedly accused Cambodia of planting new landmines, claims Phnom Penh denies.
Expert analysis reviewed by Reuters in October suggested some mines found along the frontier were likely newly laid.
Evacuations On Both Sides
Gunfire and explosions rattled border districts from early Monday.
“It startled me. The explosions were very clear, boom boom!” said Phichet Pholkoet, a resident of Thailand’s Ban Kruat district.
More than 385,000 Thai civilians across four border districts are being evacuated, with more than 35,000 already in shelters, the Thai military said.
Across the border, Cambodian opposition politician Meach Sovannara said civilians were fleeing frontier areas as artillery shelling echoed across Oddar Meanchey Province. Authorities there reported over 1,100 families evacuated.
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