BANGKOK, Jul 25 (NNN-TNA) – Armed clashes broke yesterday between Thailand and Cambodia, in long-disputed border areas, rapidly escalating months-long tensions.
The fighting included gunfire exchanges and shelling and rocket fire, which Thai authorities said, killed a Thai soldier and 13 civilians, and injured 14 soldiers and 32 other civilians. Thailand responded with air strikes.
It was the second armed confrontation since a Cambodian soldier was shot dead in May, and a major escalation that came hours after the two countries downgraded diplomatic relations, following a land mine explosion that injured Thai soldiers.
Clashes are ongoing in at least six areas along the border, the Thai Defence Ministry said. The first clash yesterday morning happened in an area near the ancient Ta Muen Thom temple, along the border of Surin and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province.– NNN-TNA
