Thailand-Cambodia border clashes enter third day as 500,000 flee fighting

Fighting betwixt Thailand and Cambodia has continued for a 3rd day, with cross-border shelling and aerial raids forcing much than fractional a cardinal civilians to fly their homes and question shelter, according to authorities.

Officials from the 2 Southeast Asian neighbours connected Wednesday besides accused each different of restarting the struggle that has killed astatine slightest 13 soldiers and civilians truthful acold this week and led much than 500,000 radical from some sides of the borderline to evacuate for safety.

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“More than 400,000 radical person been moved to harmless shelters” crossed 7 provinces, Thailand’s Ministry of Defence spokesperson Surasant Kongsiri told reporters astatine a quality conference.

“Civilians person had to evacuate successful ample numbers owed to what we assessed arsenic an imminent menace to their safety,” helium said.

The Thai subject besides reported that rockets fired from Cambodia had landed adjacent the Phanom Dong Rak Hospital successful Surin connected Wednesday morning, prompting patients and infirmary unit to instrumentality screen successful a bunker.

In neighbouring Cambodia, “101,229 radical person been evacuated to harmless shelters and relatives’ homes successful 5 provinces”, Cambodian Ministry of National Defence spokeswoman Maly Socheata said.

Cambodianess, a website operated by the Cambodian Media Broadcasting Corporation, reported that Thai F-16 jets had attacked 2 areas successful the country, portion Thai shelling continued successful 3 different areas.

Thailand’s Matichon Online quality portal besides reported that the country’s subject had deployed F-16s to onslaught “one Cambodian subject target” on the borderline connected Wednesday morning.

Cambodian rockets and artillery occurrence besides targeted 12 front-line areas successful 4 Thai provinces aboriginal successful the morning, according to Thailand’s The Nation newspaper, citing subject sources. There were nary contiguous reports connected casualties.

Al Jazeera’s Rob McBride, reporting from Surin state successful Thailand, said the Thai subject reported earlier connected Wednesday that warring took spot successful astir each of the provinces bordering Cambodia.

In Surin state alone, determination were reports of exchanges of occurrence successful 5 antithetic locations, McBride said, adding that galore thousands person evacuated.

“Most radical person near here,” helium said.

“Hundreds of thousands of radical present connected some sides of the borderline person sought refuge arsenic they person done successful the past and arsenic the warring continues,” helium added.

Cambodian soldiers thrust a motorcycle on a thoroughfare successful Oddar Meanchey state connected Wednesday pursuing clashes on the Cambodia-Thailand borderline [Cambodia Out via AFP]

Reporting from Oddar Meanchey successful northwestern Cambodia, Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Lo said section radical are moving to evacuation centres arsenic the warring has expanded to 5 borderline provinces with Thailand.

At 1 campy lodging immoderate 10,000 displaced people, Lo said conditions are “far from ideal” with galore radical sheltering nether makeshift tents of bluish tarpaulin, portion others bash not adjacent person materials to physique shelters to support from the vigor and rain.

“People present are saying determination is not capable assistance going around,” Lo said.

“But the bigger fearfulness oregon the bigger interest present is the fear. Fear that the unit could dispersed further, and close now, determination are radical packing due to the fact that we’ve been proceeding large explosions adjacent though we are kilometres distant from wherever the warring is taking place. So radical are packing and getting acceptable to determination to different evacuation camp,” helium said.

Lo added that Cambodia’s Senate President and erstwhile person Hun Sen suggested retaliatory attacks connected Thailand, and the struggle is improbable to extremity quickly.

This week’s clashes are the deadliest since 5 days of warring successful July that killed dozens and displaced immoderate 300,000 radical connected some sides of the borderline earlier a shaky truce was agreed, pursuing an involution by United States President Donald Trump.

Trump said precocious connected Tuesday that helium would marque a telephone telephone to halt the renewed fighting.

“I americium going to person to marque a telephone call. Who other could accidental I’m going to marque a telephone telephone and halt a warfare of 2 precise almighty countries, Thailand and Cambodia,” Trump said portion speaking astatine a rally successful the US authorities of Pennsylvania.

However, Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow told Al Jazeera that helium saw nary imaginable for negotiations successful the borderline conflict, adding that Bangkok did not commencement the clashes.

Cambodia’s Defence Ministry besides said connected Tuesday that its troops had nary prime but to instrumentality action, accusing Thailand of “indiscriminately and brutally targeting civilian residential areas” with artillery shells, allegations Bangkok rejected.

In a further motion of worsening relations betwixt the 2 countries, Cambodia announced connected Wednesday that it was withdrawing from the Southeast Asian Games, which are presently being held successful Thailand, citing “serious concerns”.

Tensions person simmered betwixt Bangkok and Phnom Penh since Thailand past period suspended de-escalation measures that were agreed astatine an October acme successful Trump’s beingness successful Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, aft a Thai worker was maimed by a landmine that Bangkok said was recently laid by Cambodia. Cambodian officials person rejected the allegation.

The struggle betwixt the 2 neighbours stems backmost to the colonial-era demarcation of their 800km (500-mile) frontier, and competing claims to historical temples on parts of the un-demarcated border, which person periodically spilled implicit into equipped conflict.