Thailand launches air attacks along Cambodia border after deadly clashes

A Thai military spokesman said aircraft were deployed on Monday to “suppress” Cambodian attacks following the death of a Thai soldier in Ubon Ratchathani province.

At least eight others were wounded, according to Major-General Winthai Suvaree.

The Thai statement claimed Cambodian forces “fired small arms and curved weapons” from about 5:05 a.m. (22:00 GMT Sunday). Thai officials reported confirmation of the soldier’s death around 7 a.m.

Cambodia disputed the Thai account.

In a statement posted on Facebook, the Cambodian military said Thailand initiated the attack at 5 a.m. local time after days of provocative actions, adding that Cambodian troops did not return fire.

Cambodia’s Information Minister Neth Pheaktra later told AFP that the Thai strikes killed at least four Cambodian civilians. He said the deaths took place in the border provinces of Oddar Meanchey and Preah Vihear, and that 10 others were wounded.

The violence follows another brief episode of fighting the previous day in the Phu Pha Lek–Phlan Hin Paet Kon area of Thailand’s Sisaket province, for which both sides blamed the other.

The Thai army said Cambodian fire wounded two Thai soldiers and that Thai troops returned fire, sparking a 20-minute exchange. Cambodia insisted that Thai forces opened fire first and that its soldiers did not respond.

The attacks mark the latest eruption of violence between the two neighbours, following a ceasefire that ended five days of deadly clashes in July. During those hostilities, at least 48 people were killed and an estimated 300,000 residents were temporarily displaced.

Qazinform previously reported that gunfire broke out along the Thai-Cambodian border on November 12, days after Thailand suspended a US-brokered peace agreement aimed at ending months of hostilities.

The conflict stems from a long-standing border dispute dating back to the French colonial era, when maps delineating the boundary between the two nations were first drawn. Fighting resumed earlier this year, leading to 43 deaths and the displacement of around 300,000 people before a ceasefire took effect on July 29.

That agreement, mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump with support from Chinese and Malaysian officials, called for the withdrawal of heavy weapons and the deployment of ceasefire monitors along the frontier. Analysts have noted, however, that the accord did not resolve the territorial disagreement at the heart of the conflict.