Canada's wildfires could continue into fall, says government
Canada is facing its second-worst wildfire season on record, with 7.8 million hectares already burned, and the fires could persist for weeks, accordin...
Thailand's health minister is calling for an end to the violence, after a Thai F-16 fighter jet bombed targets in Cambodia early on Thursday (24 July) as tensions over a disputed border escalated into clashes killing 11 civilians and one soldier, according to Thai authorities.
Of the six F-16 fighter jets Thailand has deployed along the border, one fired into Cambodia and destroyed a military target, according to the Thai army.
Thailand’s foreign ministry said Cambodian troops fired "heavy artillery" on a Thai military base on Thursday morning and also targeted civilian areas, including a hospital, causing civilian casualties.
"The Royal Thai Government is prepared to intensify our self-defense measures if Cambodia persists in its armed attack and violations upon Thailand's sovereignty," the ministry said in a statement.
Thailand’s health minister said 24 civilians and seven military personnel were wounded. He also accused Cambodian forces of shelling a hospital in Surin province, calling it a war crime.
"We have used air power against military targets as planned," Thai army deputy spokesperson Richa Suksuwanon told reporters.
Cambodia’s defence ministry said the jets dropped two bombs on a road and condemned the "reckless and brutal military aggression of the Kingdom of Thailand against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Cambodia".
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia, the current chair of ASEAN, urged calm and said he would speak to leaders of both countries to resolve the dispute peacefully. China also expressed concern and said it was ready to help mediate.
Cambodia’s foreign ministry said Thailand’s air strikes were "unprovoked" and urged its neighbour to withdraw forces and "refrain from any further provocative actions that could escalate the situation".
The clashes intensified after Thailand recalled its ambassador to Cambodia late on Wednesday (23 July) and said it would expel Cambodia’s envoy in Bangkok, after a second Thai soldier in a week lost a limb to a landmine that Bangkok alleged had been newly laid in the disputed area.
What Thailand said
Six people were killed and 10 wounded at the site, the military said, adding another person was killed in the border province of Ubon Ratchathani.
"The Thai Army condemns Cambodia for using weapons to attack civilians in Thailand. Thailand is ready to protect sovereignty and our people from inhumane action," it said in a statement.
The Thai army said Cambodia first sent a surveillance drone and then moved troops with heavy weapons close to the disputed Ta Moan Thom temple, around 360 km from Bangkok.
Cambodian troops opened fire, wounding two Thai soldiers, and used multiple weapons, including rocket launchers, according to the Thai military.
What Cambodia said
A spokesperson for Cambodia’s defence ministry said Thai troops crossed into Cambodian territory without provocation and that Cambodian forces acted in self-defence.
Civilians
Tensions flared after a landmine incident on Wednesday injured a Thai soldier, who lost his right leg, near the border between Ubon Ratchathani and Cambodia’s Preah Vihear Province.
Thai residents, including children and the elderly, hid in reinforced shelters in Surin province as fighting intensified.
"How many rounds have been fired? It's countless," an unidentified woman told the Thai Public Broadcasting Service, as gunfire and explosions could be heard in the background.
"Artillery shell fell on people's homes," Sutthirot Charoenthanasak, district chief of Kabcheing in Surin province, said.
"Two people have died," he said, adding that about 40,000 civilians from 86 nearby villages had been evacuated to safer areas.
Video footage showed a plume of thick black smoke rising from a gas station in the neighbouring Thai Sisaket province, where six people were killed and 10 wounded, the Thai military said. Another person was killed in Ubon Ratchathani province.
How it started
Earlier this month, three Thai soldiers were injured by landmines in the same area, with one losing a foot.
Thailand accused Cambodia of placing new landmines, while Phnom Penh denied the allegation, saying Thai soldiers had strayed from agreed patrol routes into areas contaminated with mines left from decades of war.
The ruling Pheu Thai Party said the Thai Foreign Ministry lodged a formal protest, adding, "Tourists are strictly prohibited from entering these border areas."
It said Thailand had downgraded diplomatic relations and ordered the closure of all border checkpoints under the Second Army’s jurisdiction.
Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai called the situation delicate. "We have to be careful," he told reporters. "We will follow international law."
Former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said in a Facebook post that two Cambodian provinces had come under Thai shelling.
Background
For more than a century, Thailand and Cambodia have contested various points along their 817-km (508-mile) land border. Skirmishes have broken out periodically, including a weeklong artillery exchange in 2011 that killed at least a dozen people.
Tensions were reignited in May after a Cambodian soldier was killed in an exchange of gunfire, which spiraled into the current diplomatic crisis.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the Oaxaca region of Mexico on Saturday.
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 56 kilometres east of Gorgan in northern Iran early Sunday morning, according to preliminary seismic data.
'Superman' continued to dominate the summer box office, pulling in another $57.25 million in its second weekend, as theatres welcome a wave of blockbuster competition following a challenging few years for the film industry.
Honduras has brought back mask mandates as COVID-19 cases and a new variant surge nationwide.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he expected Russian President Vladimir Putin to release more than 1,000 Ukrainian prisoners soon, after a trilateral meeting was set up with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Canada is facing its second-worst wildfire season on record, with 7.8 million hectares already burned, and the fires could persist for weeks, according to federal officials.
A research team led by Tsinghua University has unveiled a groundbreaking method for making organs transparent, offering the most detailed view yet of the brain’s inner workings.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in New Delhi today for a closely watched round of bilateral discussions with senior Indian leaders, including External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.
In Bolivia's first-round presidential election, voters decisively rejected the leftist party that has ruled the country for most of the past two decades, signaling a shift toward more market-friendly policies to address the nation's economic struggles.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment