Thailand And Cambodia Continue Hostilities For A Third Day
1- 26.07.2025, 9:55
- 3,226
At least 30 people died.
Fighting along the Thailand-Cambodia border continued for a third day, and new flashpoints emerged on Saturday. Both sides have sought diplomatic support, saying they acted in self-defense. They have called on each other to end the fighting and begin negotiations, writes Reuters .
The fiercest fighting in 13 years between the neighboring Southeast Asian countries has left at least 30 people dead and more than 130,000 displaced.
The Thai navy said clashes erupted Saturday morning in the coastal province of Trat, a new front more than 100 kilometers from other points of conflict along the long-disputed border.
The war between the two countries began after a Cambodian soldier was killed during a brief firefight in late May. Troops on both sides of the border have received reinforcements amid a full-blown diplomatic crisis that has brought Thailand's fragile coalition government to the brink of collapse.
The death toll in Thailand remained at 19 on Saturday, while Cambodian Defense Ministry spokesman Mali Socheata said five soldiers and eight civilians were killed in the fighting.
The Thai ambassador to the UN told a Security Council meeting on Friday that soldiers had twice been injured by newly planted landmines in Thai territory since mid-July (Cambodia strongly denies the allegations) and said Cambodia launched an offensive on Thursday morning.
"Thailand calls on Cambodia to immediately cease all military actions and acts of aggression and resume dialog in good faith," Cherdchai Chaiwaiwid said.
Decades of Disputes
The Cambodian Defense Ministry said Thailand launched a "deliberate, unprovoked and illegal military attack" on Thursday and is mobilizing troops and military equipment along the border.
"These deliberate military preparations reveal Thailand's intention to expand its aggression and further violate Cambodia's sovereignty," the ministry said in a statement issued Saturday.
Cambodia called on the international community to "condemn Thailand's aggression in the strongest possible terms" and prevent the expansion of military activities.
Bangkok reiterated its desire to resolve the dispute bilaterally, telling the UN Security Council that it "deeply regrets that Cambodia is deliberately avoiding constructive dialogue and instead seeks to internationalize the issue to serve its own political goals."
Thailand and Cambodia have been disputing jurisdiction at various undivided points along their 817-kilometer-long land border for decades, with the ownership of the ancient 11th-century Hindu temples of Ta Moan Thom and Preah Vihear at the center of the dispute.
In 1962, the UN International Court of Justice handed Preah Vihear to Cambodia, but tensions escalated in 2008 after Cambodia sought to have it added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.
This led to clashes lasting several years and at least a dozen deaths.
In June, Cambodia said it asked the court to resolve its disputes with Thailand, which it says has never recognized the court's jurisdiction and prefers a bilateral approach.
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