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.
Gen Z protests swept 34 German cities on Saturday (31 October) over education, living costs and military service proposals. Violence erupted in Fra...
Iran designated Britain's Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as terrorist organisations on Sunday, (1 November), and classified the country's f...
Since 2021, only 9 per cent of $8 billion in humanitarian aid for Afghanistan can be traced beyond initial recipients in public re...
Iran designated Britain's Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as terrorist organisations on Sunday, (1 November), and classified the country's foreign intelligence agency, MI6, as a hostile group, according to a statement from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
Since 2021, only 9 per cent of $8 billion in humanitarian aid for Afghanistan can be traced beyond initial recipients in public records, a Kabul Institute report released on 22 October said. The United Nations says its oversight systems ensure accountability.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki on Saturday (31 October) accused Prime Minister Donald Tusk of staging a forced takeover of the country’s Constitutional Tribunal, following the suspension of the court’s president.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he is open to calls for a formal apology for Britain’s historical role in slavery, ahead of next week’s Commonwealth summit, where he is expected to face demands for financial reparations.
The U.S. has approved the sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 missiles to Ukraine in a deal worth an estimated $2.1 billion, but Kyiv could face years of delays before receiving the weapons it urgently needs to defend against intensifying Russian attacks.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has ordered Iran's armed forces to respond to any threat immediately and without geographical limits in statements posted to social media platforms on Saturday (31 October).
Demonstrators carrying Iranian flags and placards supporting the hijab gathered outside the Azerbaijani Embassy in London.
A Chinese-made AI chip has matched Nvidia’s H200 in tests conducted by its developer, marking a potential breakthrough in China’s efforts to reduce its dependence on foreign technology.
A hacking group linked to North Korea is widely believed to be behind the theft of $6.3 billion from cryptocurrency giant Binance, a cyberattack that experts describe as the largest cryptocurrency heist on record.
Gen Z protests swept 34 German cities on Saturday (31 October) over education, living costs and military service proposals. Violence erupted in Frankfurt, where shops were looted and police reported Molotov cocktail attacks.
Iran designated Britain's Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as terrorist organisations on Sunday, (1 November), and classified the country's foreign intelligence agency, MI6, as a hostile group, according to a statement from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
Thousands protested in Albania's capital, Tirana, on Saturday (31 October), demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama's resignation over perceived corruption allegations and dissatisfaction with the government over a lack of jobs and poor education standards.
Russia has agreed to work with Ghana on developing a 2,000-megawatt nuclear power plant following talks at the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, Ghanaian Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said on Saturday.
Foreign ministers from the U.S., Japan, Australia and India raised concerns over export restrictions and economic coercion at a Quad meeting in Atlanta, U.S., on Saturday, 31 October 2026, according to their joint statement.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment