Surin: Thailand's army reported that three civilians were injured in a Cambodian rocket strike as clashes erupted between the two countries' militaries over a disputed border. The conflict took place on Thursday morning along the border separating Thailand's Surin province and Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey.
According to Emirates News Agency, the Cambodian Defence Ministry stated that the Thai military violated Cambodia's territorial integrity by initiating an armed assault on Cambodian forces stationed to defend the nation's sovereign territory. The Cambodian armed forces responded by exercising their right to self-defense in accordance with international law to repel the Thai incursion and protect Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The Thai army countered these claims, accusing Cambodian soldiers of firing first and later targeting civilians. They reported that two BM-21 rockets struck a community in Surin's Kap Choeng district, resulting in injuries to three individuals. Both nations have accused each other of initiating the hostilities.
The clashes followed a diplomatic escalation, as Thailand expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own envoy in response to an incident where five members of a Thai military patrol were wounded by a landmine.
