Thailand carried out air strikes against Cambodian military positions on Monday (Dec 8), marking the most dangerous escalation in months along the two countries’ volatile frontier. The renewed violence — which both sides blame squarely on each other — has now left at least four Cambodian civilians and one Thai soldier dead, while forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes.
Thailand’s Second Army Region announced that around 35,000 residents in Thai border areas had been evacuated as a precaution, underscoring the seriousness of the clashes.
The fighting, which reignited on Sunday before intensifying sharply on Monday, comes just months after both sides agreed to a ceasefire brokered by the United States, China and Malaysia in July. That truce followed a destructive five-day conflict earlier in the year that killed 43 people and displaced some 300,000 across the border.
The fragile calm was shaken in November when Thailand suspended a follow-on agreement co-signed by former US President Donald Trump, citing a landmine blast that wounded several Thai soldiers. Since then, officials from both countries have reported brief but persistent skirmishes along their disputed frontier.
Those tensions erupted again early Monday.
Cambodia’s information minister Neth Pheaktra said at least four Cambodian civilians were killed in Thai attacks, including a woman killed by shelling in Preah Vihear province. Three others died in Oddar Meanchey, where more than ten others were wounded. A local journalist was also injured by shrapnel from a Thai rocket.
More than 1,100 Cambodian families have fled to safety in Oddar Meanchey alone, Pheaktra added.
Cambodia’s defence ministry said Thailand initiated the confrontation by attacking Cambodian positions in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey on Monday morning. Ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata accused Thai forces of firing tank rounds at the Tamone Thom temple complex and other areas near the historic Preah Vihear temple.
“It should be noted that this attack occurred after the Thai forces engaged in numerous provocative actions for many days… to instigate confrontations,” she said, insisting Cambodia had not retaliated.
A Cambodian soldier in Preah Vihear, speaking anonymously, reported continuous Thai shelling into Cambodian territory on Monday.
Local authorities in Oddar Meanchey said gunfire was also heard around the Ta Krabei and Tamone Thom temples, both contested sites along the rugged frontier.
The Thai military presented a starkly different narrative.
Army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said one Thai soldier was killed and eight wounded by Cambodian fire on Sunday and early Monday, prompting Thailand to launch precision air strikes “in self-defence.”
He confirmed that Thai F-16 jets were used but insisted operations targeted only Cambodian military positions.
“The Thai air power is being used only against Cambodian military targets… with no impact on civilians,” Winthai said.
He also accused Cambodian forces of firing BM-21 rockets toward civilian areas in Thailand’s Buri Ram province, though no casualties were reported.
The escalation has alarmed regional leaders, particularly in ASEAN, which has traditionally struggled to mediate long-running Thailand–Cambodia territorial disputes.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose country currently chairs ASEAN, urged both sides to halt military action and return to dialogue. “Our region cannot afford to see long-standing disputes slip into cycles of confrontation,” he warned.
The conflict also carries geopolitical overtones given previous involvement by outside powers. In October, Trump co-signed a joint declaration celebrating a renewed ceasefire and announcing trade deals with both countries. That agreement collapsed weeks later when Bangkok suspended its participation.
Asked about international calls for restraint, Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul struck a defiant tone.
“No one should tell us to exercise restraint — we’re long past that point,” he told reporters in Bangkok. “If you want things to stop, tell the aggressor to stop.”
As both sides dig in and the death toll mounts, the risk of a wider and more sustained conflict looms large, raising urgent questions about whether regional diplomacy can rein in the simmering crisis before it spirals further.
