Gazeta Lodz - Cambodia, Thailand trade accusations of fresh border clashes

Five days of hostilities erupted between Thailand and Cambodia this summer, killing 43 people and displacing around 300,000 before a truce backed by US President Donald Trump cooled tensions.

However, Thailand on Monday paused implementation of a follow-on deal to wind down hostilities, claiming a blast from a newly laid landmine had wounded four of its soldiers.

Two days on, both sides traded blame over fresh gunfire.

Cambodian information minister Neth Pheaktra told AFP "Thai soldiers opened fire on civilians", wounding at least five in Prey Chan village of Banteay Meanchey Province, citing a toll from local authorities.

Richa Suksuwanon, deputy spokesperson of the Royal Thai Army, told reporters that soldiers heard small arms fire from the Cambodian side around 4:00 pm (0900 GMT) but "did not return fire".

"It is believed to be a provocation by the Cambodian side," he said.

Cambodia's information ministry shared images and video which it alleged showed wounded civilians, including one man being treated in an ambulance with a bloodied leg.

AFP was not able to verify the provenance of the images.

But local Cambodian villager Hul Malis told AFP by phone that gunfire had wounded at least three people in her area.

"They just shot at us. We did nothing," she said. "I am so frightened, I am running away now."

The dispute between Thailand and Cambodia dates back more than a century to a disagreement over the colonial-era mapping of their border.

Tensions have long flared around a smattering of border temples which both sides claim for their own as a result.

Both sides agreed a truce late July after intervention by Trump, as well as Chinese diplomats and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) bloc.

Late last month they signed a joint declaration agreeing to further wind down tensions along the border, withdrawing heavy weapons and allowing ceasefire monitors access.

While experts said the deal failed to adjudicate the core territorial dispute, Trump touted the deal as evidence of his presidential peace-making abilities.

P.Nowak--GL