Surin (Thailand): Border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia escalated Saturday as both sides accused each other of fresh attacks, marking the third consecutive day of deadly clashes. The violence has so far claimed at least 33 lives and forced over 168,000 people to flee, even as international allies urged an immediate ceasefire.
Artillery and small arms fire were reported near several border villages, expanding the area of the fighting that flared Thursday after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers. Cambodian and Thai officials blamed each other for starting the clashes.
Both countries recalled their ambassadors and Thailand closed its border crossings with Cambodia.
Cambodian authorities reported 12 new deaths on Saturday, bringing its toll to 13, while the Thai military said a soldier was killed, raising the number of dead to 20, mostly civilians.
Cambodia’s Information Minister Neth Pheaktra said Saturday that the clashes have forced 10,865 Cambodian families, or 37,635 people, in three border provinces to evacuate to safe locations. Thai officials said more than 131,000 people have fled their border villages.
The 800-kilometre frontier between Thailand and Cambodia has been disputed for decades, but past confrontations have been limited and brief. The latest tensions flared in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a confrontation that created a diplomatic rift and roiled Thailand’s domestic politics.
International allies call for peace
On Saturday, President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that he has talked with the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia and suggested he would not conclude a trade agreement with either country if the cross-border hostilities continued. He later said both sides have agreed to meet to negotiate a ceasefire.
Officials from the two countries did not immediately confirm any plan to meet.
Trump’s comments followed increasing pressure on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to defuse the tensions between its two members.
During an emergency meeting Friday, members of the UN Security Council called for a de-escalation and urged ASEAN to mediate a peaceful solution. The council didn’t issue a resolution on the crisis, but Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said Saturday that the group’s 15 members called for restraint, an end to hostilities and a peaceful resolution.
The leader of Malaysia, ASEAN’s current chair, has said Thailand and Cambodia are open to a ceasefire proposal. Malaysian media said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has tasked the country’s foreign minister with mediating peace talks, but no concrete plans have been announced.
Maris said earlier Saturday that his country has agreed in principle to ASEAN’s ceasefire proposal, but insisted Cambodia must first cease hostilities. He said Thailand continues to engage with Malaysia on the matter.
“Thailand reaffirms its commitment to resolving the conflict peacefully and in accordance with international law,” he said, urging Cambodia to “return to the negotiating table with sincerity and in good faith.”
Sides trade accusations, deny responsibility
Cambodia’s Defence Ministry condemned what it called an expanded Thai offensive early Saturday after five heavy artillery shells were fired into Pursat province. It said the attack was an “unprovoked and premeditated act of aggression.”
Ministry spokesperson Lt Gen Maly Socheata said tensions flared in the coastal province of Koh Kong and expressed concern about the possibility of confrontations at sea.
Maly Socheata said seven Cambodian civilians and five soldiers have been killed in two days of fighting. Another man was reportedly killed when a pagoda he was hiding under was hit by Thai rockets.
The Thai army has denied targeting Cambodian civilians and accuses Phnom Penh of using “human shields” by positioning their weapons near residential areas.
In a statement Saturday, Thailand’s navy accused Cambodian forces of initiating a new attack in the province of Trat, which shares a border with Koh Kong, saying Thai forces responded swiftly and “successfully pushed back the Cambodian incursion at three key points.” The navy warned that “aggression will not be tolerated.”
Thai authorities also alleged several Cambodian artillery shells damaged homes and property in neighbouring Laos. Lao officials have not publicly responded to the claim.
Call to protect civilians amid claim of cluster bomb use
Human Rights Watch urged the UN Security Council and other nations to press Thailand and Cambodia to abide by international humanitarian law and take all steps to protect civilians. Children have been harmed and Thailand has closed at least 852 schools and seven hospitals for safety reasons, the rights group said in a statement Saturday.
Both sides have fired rockets and artillery, and after initially denying Cambodian claims that internationally prohibited cluster munitions were being used, a Thai military spokesperson said Friday that such weapons can be utilised “when necessary” to achieve military objectives. Human Rights Watch condemned the use of cluster munitions in populated areas.
Neither Thailand nor Cambodia is party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bans the use of the weapon. Thai authorities used them during a border dispute with Cambodia in February 2011 that left 20 people dead.
“Neither Thailand nor Cambodia appears to be paying attention to international humanitarian law at great expense to civilians,” John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. “Diplomatic efforts underway need to prioritise protecting civilians and civilian infrastructure.”
Thai officials acknowledged that it has used F-16 jets and drones to launch airstrikes.
AP