BANGKOK/PHNOM PENH (Agencies) July 26, 2025 – Intense clashes erupted along the Thailand–Cambodia frontier for a third consecutive day, leaving at least 32 people dead and forcing over 158,000 villagers from their homes, according to officials on both sides.
The renewed fighting began on July 24 near the disputed Ta Muen Thom and Preah Vihear temple areas, as Cambodian forces deployed BM-21 Grad rocket launchers and Thai troops responded with F-16 airstrikes. Twelve Cambodian civilians and five soldiers have been confirmed killed, while Thailand reports 13 civilian and six military fatalities in its territory.
More than 138,000 residents from Thailand’s border provinces—Surin, Sisaket, Ubon Ratchathani and Buriram—were evacuated to roughly 300 reception centres after artillery and rocket fire struck hospitals, schools and a petrol station in the Kantharalak district, where six civilians died in a single strike on Thursday3. Cambodian authorities say at least 20,000 people have fled villages in Oddar Meanchey and Preah Vihear provinces to temples and school shelters further inland.
Martial law was declared in eight Thai border districts as Bangkok sealed crossings and mobilised additional armoured units. Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai warned that the conflict “could develop into war” if hostilities continue, and vowed Thailand would “intensify self-defence measures” to protect its sovereignty and civilians.
Phnom Penh meanwhile downgraded diplomatic relations to their lowest level, recalling all but one of its diplomats from Bangkok and accusing Thailand of “brutal military aggression” that has damaged Cambodia’s UNESCO World Heritage temples—claims Bangkok denied as “distortions of fact.” Defence Ministry spokesperson Maly Socheata defended Cambodian troops as exercising their “legitimate right to repel aggression”.
The United Nations Security Council held a closed-door emergency meeting late Friday in New York, where all 15 members urged both sides to de-escalate and resolve their dispute peacefully. ASEAN chair Malaysia called for an immediate ceasefire and offered to mediate, though Thailand insists any talks must be based on “appropriate on-the-ground conditions” and bilateral dialogue only.
Humanitarian agencies report critical shortages of food, water and medical supplies in makeshift camps on both sides of the border. UNICEF warns that displaced children face heightened risks of malnutrition and disease in the monsoon season.
India’s embassies in Phnom Penh and Bangkok have issued travel advisories urging nationals to avoid the conflict-affected areas and providing emergency contact details for consular assistance.
The decades-old border dispute—rooted in colonial-era treaties and reignited by a May skirmish that killed a Cambodian soldier—has periodically flared since the International Court of Justice awarded Preah Vihear temple to Cambodia in 1962. Experts warn that without a durable diplomatic solution, the tit-for-tat shelling risks plunging Southeast Asia’s once-quiet frontier into a protracted conflic.