Thailand Launches Airstrikes on Cambodia, Escalating Conflict
(MENAFN) Thai and Cambodian forces engaged in fierce fighting on Thursday within a contested border zone, with each side blaming the other for sparking the confrontation, according to officials and local news outlets.
Amid mounting tensions over the territorial dispute, Thailand's military escalated the conflict by deploying an F-16 fighter jet against Cambodian troops, as reported by media citing the Thai Royal Army. One of six F-16s stationed near the disputed area launched an attack, destroying a military target inside Cambodia.
"We have used air power against military targets as planned," said Thai army deputy spokesperson Richa Suksuwanon during a press briefing.
The Thai army later confirmed that all deployed F-16s safely returned to base.
Cambodian forces retaliated with their own counterattack early Thursday, according to media, which quoted Cambodia’s Defense Ministry.
“Cambodia has always stood by its principle of resolving disputes through peaceful means,” Prime Minister Hun Manet stated. “But in this situation, we have no choice but to respond with military force against the armed aggression.”
This latest outbreak of violence followed the injury of a Thai soldier who lost his leg due to a landmine blast the day prior.
The Thai military accused Cambodian troops of opening fire near a base close to the ancient Ta Muen Thom Temple, located within the disputed region in southern Thailand’s Surin province, the media reported, referencing the Thai Royal Army.
In response, Cambodia’s Defense Ministry asserted its forces acted defensively against an unprovoked Thai incursion.
Tragically, two Thai civilians were killed and two more injured after Cambodian rocket fire struck a border development center in Surin’s Karb Choeng district early Thursday morning, according to a local public broadcaster.
The Thai army condemned Cambodia for targeting the center with rockets, reporting that two BM-21 rockets launched by Cambodian troops hit the community facility at 9:40 a.m. (02:40 GMT). Authorities quickly evacuated all individuals inside the center.
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