Thailand launched airstrikes against Cambodian positions on Monday as tensions along their disputed border flared once again, leaving one Thai soldier dead and several others wounded.
The two governments—long at odds over ill-defined frontier lines and ownership of ancient temple sites—traded accusations throughout the day as civilians on both sides fled the escalating violence.
According to the Thai army, Cambodian forces opened fire on Thai troops in Ubon Ratchathani province early Monday morning.
Army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said the attack involved “supporting fire weapons,” killing one soldier and injuring four others. In response, he confirmed, Thailand deployed aircraft to strike “military targets in several areas” to suppress further attacks.
Cambodia rejected that characterization. Defense ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata accused Thai troops of initiating the confrontation, saying Thai forces fired tank shells at positions near the historic Tamone Thom temple and other locations close to the Preah Vihear complex—another flashpoint in the decades-long border dispute.
She said Cambodian forces did not return fire.
Local officials in Oddar Meanchey province reported gunfire near the centuries-old Tamone Thom and Ta Krabei temples, prompting villagers living near the frontier to flee for safety.
Thailand’s Second Army Region said approximately 35,000 Thai residents have now been evacuated from border communities. Thai military officials also accused Cambodian troops of firing BM-21 rockets into Buri Ram province, though no casualties were reported.
The latest confrontation follows a brief skirmish reported on Sunday that left two Thai soldiers wounded.
It also marks the most significant escalation since last summer, when five days of fighting killed 43 people and displaced nearly 300,000 before a ceasefire—brokered with help from the United States, China and Malaysia—took effect.
That truce was reinforced in October, when U.S. President Donald Trump co-signed a joint declaration with both countries amid negotiations over new trade deals.
But Thailand suspended its participation last month after several soldiers were injured in what Bangkok described as a Cambodian landmine blast.
Each side has since accused the other of breaking the ceasefire, with Phnom Penh claiming a civilian was killed in recent clashes.
At the heart of the dispute is a century-old disagreement over maps drawn during France’s colonial rule of Indochina.
Both governments claim ownership of multiple border temples whose surrounding land remains a source of recurring military friction—and, increasingly, a symbol of national pride.
