Deadly Thai-Cambodian border clash leaves soldier dead amid blame exchange

Thai-Cambodian border clash escalates

A Thai soldier was killed and several others were wounded in fresh border clashes with Cambodia, Thailand's army said Monday, with both sides trading blame for the latest eruption in fighting along their frontier.

After Cambodian troops fired on Thai forces early Monday morning in Ubon Ratchathani province, "the Army received reports that Thai soldiers were attacked with supporting fire weapons, resulting in one soldier killed and four wounded", Thai army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said in a statement.

Cambodia's defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said Thai forces launched an attack on Cambodian troops in the border provinces of Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey early Monday morning, adding that Cambodia had not retaliated.

Thailand's Second Army Region said in a statement that around 35,000 people in Thailand have been evacuated from areas along the border with Cambodia since the renewed fighting.

Both sides reported a brief skirmish on Sunday, which Thailand's military had said left two soldiers wounded.

The clashes follow Bangkok’s recent announcement that it would no longer uphold the July ceasefire, accusing Cambodia of planting new landmines that injured a Thai soldier—a claim Phnom Penh denies. The earlier truce, brokered at the ASEAN summit and overseen by international mediators, had brought a temporary halt to five days of fighting that left at least 48 dead.

The area surrounding the historic Preah Vihear temple has long been a flashpoint, despite International Court of Justice rulings recognising Cambodia’s claim. Five days of clashes erupted between Thailand and Cambodia this summer, killing 43 people and displacing around 300,000 before a truce took effect.

(With AFP inputs)