UPDATES:
20:12: UNESCO on Wednesday welcomed “efforts to achieve lasting peace” following the recent border conflict between Cambodia and Thailand, calling peace an essential condition for the protection of cultural heritage in both countries.
The statement came after reports of damage to the long-disputed Preah Vihear temple and potentially other contested heritage sites during the fighting, which has now entered a fragile ceasefire.
UNESCO said it had begun monitoring cultural heritage sites along the border using satellite imagery, which suggested hostilities may have caused damage in both countries, including to some UNESCO World Heritage sites. The U.N. agency said it had shared the sites’ geographical coordinates with both governments and stood ready to provide technical assistance to assess potential damage, ensure protection and carry out any necessary safeguarding measures.
It also reminded both countries of their obligations under international law, including guidelines for the protection of cultural heritage in times of armed conflict.
15:17: Defense Ministry Secretary of State Gen. Chhum Sucheat told CamboJA News the ministry has not verified Thai army reports that 18 Cambodian soldiers were captured and two others killed in the Sam Tae area of Thailand’s Si Sa Ket province on Tuesday, when fighting reportedly broke out. Thailand accused Cambodian troops of violating the ceasefire already in effect at the time, a claim Cambodia denies.
However, Cambodian military commander Chan Sopheaktra, speaking to defense representatives from more than a dozen countries near the Preah Vihear border on Wednesday, said 17 Cambodian troops were captured and two others killed after fighting briefly broke out on Tuesday. He said one soldier escaped and returned the same day. Sopheaktra accused Thai forces of opening fire first, allegedly ambushing Cambodian troops after both sides gathered for a photo to mark the ceasefire. Thailand has accused Cambodia of firing first in the same clash.
Another high-ranking military official, speaking in the broadcast from Preah Vihear, said the regional unit is working with a Malaysian army chief to secure the return of the captured soldiers.
13:34: Military attache and defense representatives from 13 countries, including the U.S., China and Malaysia, inspect the An Ses border checkpoint in Preah Vihear province on Wednesday after Cambodia and Thailand agreed to a ceasefire.
11:43: a.m: A Defense Ministry spokesperson said the number of displaced Cambodians from five days of border clashes with Thailand had risen to around 169,000 across five provinces as of July 29.
- Oddar Meanchey: 38,447 displaced residents sheltering in informal camps in the province’s south
- Preah Vihear: 29,717 displaced, remaining within the province
- Banteay Meanchey: 34,264 displaced, including people from Oddar Meanchey, seeking refuge further inland
- Pursat: At least 3,026 displaced in local camps
- Siem Reap: 63,492 displaced, many from border towns in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey
The total number of displaced persons in both Cambodia and Thailand has been estimated at 300,000.
A Malaysian military attache and representatives from 13 other embassies in Cambodia will inspect areas along the border with Thailand where deadly clashes erupted last week, a Cambodian defense official said, as the two sides navigate a fragile ceasefire that Thailand claims was violated.
“The Malaysian teams have been established and will be deployed today to verify compliance with the ceasefire agreement,” Cambodian Defense Ministry spokesperson Malay Socheata told a press conference early Wednesday.
Leaders from Thailand and Cambodia met in Malaysia on Monday and agreed to a truce aimed at ending their deadliest conflict in more than a decade. The five days of fighting killed at least 43 people – many of them civilians – and displaced more than 300,000 in both countries.
Military commanders from both sides also met the following day to discuss steps to uphold the ceasefire.
Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Cambodian troops of violating the ceasefire early Tuesday, with the alleged violations continuing into the morning of July 30. Cambodia denied the claim, saying its forces have strictly abided by the ceasefire since midnight, according to a statement from Defence Minister Tea Seiha.
Lim Menghour, director-general of Cambodia’s Commission on Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, told Reuters that both militaries have agreed not to deploy additional troops along the disputed border and that international observers are needed to monitor the ceasefire.
The Thai side has not issued a statement on the deployment of international observers as of Wednesday morning, but a Malaysian military statement released on July 29 said a high-ranking general led a delegation to both Thailand and Cambodia to engage in diplomatic discussions.
Cambodia has called for the swift establishment of an independent observer team to ensure transparency, verify compliance and support the ceasefire.
Further negotiations are set to continue at a General Border Committee meeting on August 4 in Cambodia, the Thai army said. The committee, which handles border security, ceasefires and troop deployments, includes the defense ministers and senior military commanders from both countries.
(Reporting by Khuon Narim, Coby Hobbs)
