Thailand: Thailand has struck targets along its disputed border with Cambodia, reigniting tensions just weeks after a ceasefire was put in place to stop a fast-moving conflict between the two nations.
Thai officials said the strikes were carried out on Monday after clashes that left one Thai soldier dead and four others wounded. The military accused Cambodia of moving heavy weaponry and repositioning combat units close to the border, prompting what Bangkok described as necessary defensive action.
Cambodia rejected the accusation, stating that its forces had not retaliated despite what it called repeated provocations from Thailand. Officials in Oddar Meanchey province reported that three civilians were seriously injured as fighting surged near border villages.
The renewed violence comes six weeks after a ceasefire was signed under the mediation of US president Donald Trump, following five days of conflict in July that left at least 48 people dead and drove 300,000 people from their homes.
Although the agreement stopped large-scale hostilities, tensions have remained high, and Thailand suspended the deal in November, accusing Cambodia of laying new landmines that wounded a Thai soldier.
Statement by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Armed Clashes along the Thai–Cambodian Border, 8 December 2025 pic.twitter.com/rESiUszSub
— PR Thai Government (@prdthailand) December 8, 2025
Hun Sen, Cambodia’s former prime minister and a dominant political force, urged his country’s military to avoid being drawn into retaliation. He warned that Thailand was seeking to escalate the situation and told commanders to reinforce discipline along the front.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul insisted Bangkok did not start the latest clashes but said the country would not accept any breach of its sovereignty. He stressed that Thailand would act with restraint while safeguarding national security.
Both countries have ordered mass evacuations as fighting intensifies. Thai authorities said more than 385,000 civilians have been asked to leave border districts across four provinces, with about 35,000 people registered at shelters by Monday morning. Cambodia also reported large-scale displacement, saying more than a thousand families had moved to safer areas.
Regional concern is growing. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who helped broker the original ceasefire and chairs the ASEAN bloc, urged both nations to pull back from further confrontation. He warned that renewed hostilities risk undoing months of delicate diplomatic efforts.
Border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia stretch back over a century, rooted in colonial-era maps drawn when France occupied Cambodia until 1953. The long, rugged frontier has seen repeated flare-ups over the years, often driven by nationalist sentiment and competing territorial claims.
