Cambodian, Thai soldiers again exchange gunfire on Saturday

The exchange of firing between Cambodian and Thai soldiers started again on early Saturday in the disputed border area near the 13th century Ta Krabei temple in Oddar Meanchey province, marking the ninth straight day of border clash.

The fighting erupted again despite both sides reached ceasefire agreement after the conflict left eight Cambodian and seven Thai soldiers and one Thai civilian dead in the last eight days.
"The fighting started again this morning at around 4:00 a.m. at Ta Krabei temple, Thai soldiers launched the attack first," said Suos Sothea, the deputy commander of the artillery unit.
"Thai troops have fired small arms, rockets and artillery at our troops. We have also opened fire to defend our territory, but we have not used heavy weapons to fight back yet. It's too early to report casualties," Xinhua quoted him, as saying.
The border between Thailand and Cambodia has never been completely demarcated.
Cambodian Ministry of Defense said that Thai troops wanted to capture Ta Krabei temple and Ta Mon temple, 150 kilometers west of Preah Vihear temple, which has been a flash point of border conflict between the two neighboring countries since UNESCO listed it as a World Heritage Site in 2008. (ANI)

SEARCH