Thousands flee disputed border after deadly clashes and airstrikes

Residents on both sides of the Thai and Cambodian border were evacuated en masse on Monday as fresh clashes broke out, killing at least five people.

Both sides have accused each other of sparking the violence, which is the most serious confrontation between the two countries since they agreed to a ceasefire in July.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said his country “never wanted violence” but would “use necessary means to preserve its sovereignty”, while former Cambodian leader Hun Sen accused Thai “invaders” of provoking retaliation.

Since May, escalating tensions between neighbors have led to more than 40 deaths, as well as import bans and travel restrictions.

On Monday, the Thai military said its troops responded to Cambodian fire in Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani province, including by launching airstrikes along the disputed border; while the Defense Ministry in Phnom Penh said it was Thai forces who attacked first, in Cambodia’s Preah Vihear province.

At least one Thai soldier and four Cambodian civilians were killed and a dozen injured following Monday’s fighting, according to officials on both sides.

But for Thai teacher Siksaka Pongsuwan, there are other hidden victims of the clashes: children living near the border, he warns, are “losing opportunities and… precious time” compared to their peers living in relatively peaceful towns.

Nearly 650 schools across five Thai provinces have been ordered to close for safety reasons, Thailand’s education minister said, following renewed tensions brewing since Sunday.

Meanwhile, videos on social media show chaotic scenes at schools in Cambodia’s border provinces as parents rush to get their children home.

And this is not the first time that these children have seen their schooling interrupted in recent months.

In July, in the middle of the children’s examination, five days of intense fighting broke out between the two nations.

Subsequently, the Pongsuwan school moved to online classes, but not all students were able to access them: some lived in households without internet, while the iPads distributed by schools did not reach everyone.

In Cambodia, former journalist Mech Dara shared several clips of children frantically leaving their schools on his X account.

“How many times [do these] children have to endure a shocking environment?” he wrote. “The absurd fights bring the children [a] horrible nightmare.”

He also shared a photo of a boy, still in school uniform, eating in an underground bunker. “Why do the child and his family have to eat their meal in the bunker…?” he wrote.

Meanwhile, Pongsuwan told the BBC that he and his neighbors were now torn over whether to evacuate – even though gunshots can be heard from time to time in his village.

“If you’re asking if we’re afraid, yes, we are…Should we leave? Is it really safer? Or should we stay?” he told the BBC.

The century-old border conflict between the Southeast Asian countries escalated significantly with a barrage of Cambodian rockets on Thailand on the morning of July 24, followed by Thai airstrikes.

A few days later, Bangkok and Phnom Penh agreed to an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” brokered by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

In October, the two sides signed a ceasefire agreement in a ceremony with U.S. President Donald Trump in Malaysia. At the time, Trump claimed a historic achievement in ending the border conflict.

But just two weeks after the signing, Thailand announced it would suspend implementation of the agreement, after two of its soldiers were injured in a mine explosion near the Cambodian border.

Cambodia, which nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in brokering the ceasefire, has repeatedly said it is committed to the deal.

Thailand and Cambodia have disputed territorial sovereignty along their 800 km land border for more than a century, since the two nations’ borders were drawn after the French occupation of Cambodia.

Additional reporting by Jonathan Head and Koh Ewe