Tensions between Cambodia and Thailand have intensified following a recent clash along their volatile border, resulting in the death of a Cambodian villager. The incident occurred just days after a Thai soldier lost a foot to a landmine in the same region, prompting Thailand to suspend its adherence to a ceasefire agreement brokered in July. The ceasefire, partially mediated by former U.S. President Donald Trump, aimed to end five days of armed conflict that claimed dozens of lives in late July. Trump had threatened to withhold trade privileges from both nations unless hostilities ceased. However, the fragile truce now appears to be unraveling. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet reported that Thai troops opened fire on civilians in Prey Chan, a village in Cambodia’s Banteay Meanchey province, killing one and injuring three. Thailand, however, claimed the confrontation began when Cambodian soldiers allegedly fired into Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province, prompting Thai forces to respond with warning shots. The two nations have a long history of territorial disputes, rooted in a 1907 map drawn during Cambodia’s French colonial era and exacerbated by a 1962 International Court of Justice ruling awarding sovereignty of the Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia. The ceasefire, while halting immediate violence, failed to address the underlying border disputes, leaving the region in a precarious state.
Cambodia and Thailand’s border conflict heats up again as Cambodian villager is reported killed
