By Lobsang DS Subirana
Bangkok (EFE).- Fighting between Thai and Cambodian forces continued for a second straight day Friday morning along disputed sections of their shared border, with Thai authorities reporting sustained artillery attacks and more than 100,000 civilians fleeing violence.
At least 14 civilians have been killed and 31 injured since clashes began early Thursday, according to Thai authorities. The Royal Thai Army said Cambodian troops launched a “sustained bombardment” beginning before dawn Friday across at least 12 flashpoints, prompting the evacuation of communities within a 40 to 50 kilometer radius of the fighting.
“The head of the Assistant Military Attaches to Thailand expressed his regret over the conflict and asked for the situation to be resolved as soon as possible through diplomatic negotiations,” the army said on its official X account.
At least one Thai soldier had been killed and 15 had been injured as of press time Friday.
Thai media said it received reports that up to 24 Cambodian military personnel had been killed, though it added that this information could not be independently verified. Phnom Penh has not released official figures of casualties suffered since fighting erupted Thursday.
Thailand’s health ministry said at least 130,000 people from border provinces including Surin, Sisaket and Buriram had been relocated. Schools in affected areas have been closed indefinitely, and public shelters are being set up to accommodate evacuees.
Social media footage shows civilians taking refuge in their hundreds, sprawled across mats and chairs with basic belongings under pavilions and warehouses set up for the relief effort.
Thailand’s National Blood Center called on citizens to donate blood as hospitals in border provinces brace for an influx of casualties.
“We urgently need all blood types,” the centre said in a post shared by the country’s state media.
Following reports of hospitals and religious sites taking damage from Cambodian fire, Thai state media said the attacks may constitute war crimes and published an article headlined “How Cambodia Violated the Geneva Convention.” Phnom Penh has not responded to the allegations, which target Cambodia’s Senate President Hun Sen as the instigator.
Army Spokesman Maj. Gen. Vithai Laithomya said Friday that Hun Sen, a former strongman who ruled Cambodia for 38 years before his son Hun Manet succeeded him in 2023, is behind the “indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets.” Phnom Penh has rejected the claims, labeling them “baseless.”
Cambodia on Friday accused Thailand of using cluster munitions to arbitrarily target its people.
“The use of cluster munitions – especially in or near civilian-populated areas – is an unacceptable escalation. It shows complete disregard for human life, humanitarian principles and regional peace,” said Senior Minister Ly Thuch, first vice-president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority.
Tensions between the two Southeast Asian neighbors, long simmering over historical border disputes that stem from colonial times, have intensified in recent weeks.
The partition was delineated in 1907 following Cambodia’s independence from France and remains the subject of profound disagreements between the neighbors to this date, in part due to the 11th-century temple of Preah Vihear, claimed by both sides. Thailand first occupied it in 1954 and tensions have remained since.
These re-erupted in late May following the death of a Cambodian soldier from Thai gunfire along the Preah Vihear-Ubon Ratchathani national border.
Hun Sen came at odds with Thailand’s leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra in June following a conversation between the two initially aimed at calming the situation. He made the recording public in which Paetongtarn appeared subservient to him and caught her criticizing her own armed forces, leading to her suspension and calls for her resignation.
Hun Sen continues to be largely influential in Cambodian politics despite no longer being head of government and has been vocal about the conflict since it re-escalated Thursday.
International reaction to the strife has been swift. The United States Embassy in Bangkok issued a statement urging both nations to exercise restraint and engage in immediate dialog.
“The United States is gravely concerned by reports of the escalating fighting along the Thailand-Cambodia border. We are particularly alarmed by reports of harm to innocent civilians,” the embassy said in a statement.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim also appealed for calm Thursday, offering to mediate talks between Bangkok and Phnom Penh under the auspices of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, an economic bloc to which all three countries belong.
Despite these diplomatic overtures, fighting did not seem to de-escalate as of press time, with both sides accusing each other of instigating the current violence. EFE
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