Thailand launches airstrikes on Cambodia as border clashes leave at
least 14 dead
[July 25, 2025]
By JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI and SOPHENG CHEANG
SURIN, Thailand (AP) — Thai and Cambodian soldiers have clashed along
the border between their countries in a major escalation that left at
least 14 people dead, mostly civilians. The two sides fired small arms,
artillery and rockets, and Thailand also launched airstrikes.
Fighting took place in at least six areas on Thursday, according to Thai
Defense Ministry spokesperson Surasant Kongsiri, a day after a land mine
explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers and led Bangkok to
withdraw its ambassador from Cambodia and expel Cambodia’s envoy to
Thailand.
On Friday, Cambodia's chief official in Oddar Meanchey province, Gen.
Khov Ly, said clashes resumed early in the morning near the ancient Ta
Muen Thom temple. Associated Press reporters near the border could hear
sounds of artillery from early morning hours.
The official also said that at least four civilians were wounded in
Thursday's fighting there and that more than 4,000 people have been
displaced from their villages along the border to evacuation centers. It
was the first account of any casualties from the Cambodian side.
The escalation represents a rare instance of military conflict between
member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nation, though
Thailand has tangled with Cambodia before over the border and has had
sporadic skirmishes with western neighbor Myanmar.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged both sides “to exercise
maximum restraint and address any issues through dialogue," according to
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq.
Each side blames the other
Thailand and Cambodia have blamed each other for the clashes, alleging
that civilians were being targeted.
In Bangkok, the Public Health Ministry said a Thai soldier and 13
civilians, including children, were killed while 14 soldiers and 32
other civilians were injured. Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin
condemned what he said were the attacks on civilians and a hospital as
violations of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions.
"We urge the Cambodian government to immediately halt these war criminal
actions, and return to respecting the principles of peaceful
coexistence,” he said.
Thailand’s Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said the fighting
affected four provinces. The Interior Ministry was ordered to evacuate
people at least 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the border.
In Cambodia, several hundred villagers moved from their homes near the
border to about 30 kilometers (18 miles) deeper inside Oddar Meanchey
province. Many made the journey with entire families and most of their
possessions on home-made tractors, before settling down with hammocks
and makeshift shelters.
From the encampment near the town of Samrong, a 45-year-old mother of
four, Tep Savouen, said it all started about 8 a.m.
“Suddenly I heard a loud noise," she told the AP. "My son told me it
might be thunder and I thought ’Is it thunder or is it loud, more like a
gun?′ At that time I was very scared.”
Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura said the
government was “prepared to intensify our self-defense measures if
Cambodia persists in its armed aggression and violations upon Thailand’s
sovereignty.”
In the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, Defense Ministry spokesperson
Lt. Gen. Maly Socheata said his country deployed armed force because “it
has no choice but to defend its territory against Thai threats." The
spokesperson insisted the Cambodian "attacks are focused on the military
places, not on any other place.”
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet wrote to the U.N. Security Council
asking for an urgent meeting “to stop Thailand’s aggression.” The
council scheduled an emergency closed meeting at 3 p.m. in New York on
Friday.
Thailand also sealed all land border crossings while urging its citizens
to leave Cambodia. Officials said all seven Thai airlines expressed
willingness to help bring back any Thai nationals seeking to return home
from Cambodia.
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Thai people looks at the damage of Phanom Dong Rak hospital after
Cambodia fired artillery shells at Surin Province, Thailand,
Thursday, July 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunny Chittawil)
A long-standing border problem
The two Southeast Asian neighbors have long had border disputes,
which periodically flare along their 800-kilometer (500-mile)
frontier and usually result in brief confrontations, only rarely
involving the use of weapons. The last major combat over the issue
was in 2011, leaving 20 dead.
However, relations sharply deteriorated since a May confrontation
killed a Cambodian soldier. Thursday’s clashes were unusually big in
intensity.
The first clash on Thursday morning happened near the Ta Muen Thom
temple along the border of Thailand’s Surin province and Cambodia’s
Oddar Meanchey, prompting villagers to scurry to shelter in concrete
bunkers.
The Thai army and Cambodia’s Defense Ministry each said the other
side deployed drones before advancing on the other's positions and
opening fire. The two sides later used heavier weaponry such as
artillery, causing greater damage and casualties, and Thailand said
it responded with airstrikes to truck-mounted rockets launched by
Cambodia.
Thailand’s air force said it deployed F-16 fighter jets in two
attacks on Cambodia. Nikorndej, the Thai spokesperson, called it “an
act of self-defense” in response to Cambodian rockets.
Cambodia’s Defense Ministry said the Thai jets dropped bombs on a
road near the ancient Preah Vihear temple, which has been a site of
past conflicts between the two countries.
Cambodian authorities distributed photos they claimed showed damage
caused there, and the country’s Culture Ministry said it would
pursue justice under international law, since the temple was
declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO, the U.N.’s cultural
organization, and is a “historical legacy of the Cambodian people.”
A diplomatic uproar
Relations frayed badly even before the clashes began. On Wednesday,
Thailand withdrew its ambassador to Cambodia and expelled the
Cambodian ambassador to protest the mine blast that wounded its
soldiers.
Thai authorities alleged the mines were newly laid along paths that
both sides had agreed were supposed to be safe. They said the mines
were Russian-made and not of a type employed by Thailand’s military.
Cambodia rejected Thailand’s account as “baseless accusations,”
pointing out that many unexploded mines and other ordnance are a
legacy of 20th century wars and unrest.
Cambodia also downgraded diplomatic relations, recalling all
Cambodian staff on Thursday from its embassy in Bangkok.
The border dispute has also roiled Thailand's domestic politics.
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra came under fire earlier this
month over a phone call with Cambodia's former Prime Minister Hun
Sen, still a power broker in his country, when she tried to defuse
the situation. She then was suspended from office on July 1 pending
an investigation into possible ethics violations over the matter.
___
Associated Press writers Sopheng Cheang in Samroing, Cambodia, and
Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
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