Over 500,000 displaced in Cambodia by Thai border clashes: Interior ministry

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Residents evacuating following air strikes in Cambodias Siem Reap province on Dec 15.

PHOTO: AFP

PHNOM PENH - More than half a million people in Cambodia have been displaced from their homes by two weeks of deadly border clashes with neighbouring Thailand, Phnom Penh’s interior ministry said on Dec 21.

“At present, more than half a million Cambodian people, including women and children, are suffering severe hardship due to forced displacement from their homes and schools to escape artillery shells, rockets, and aerial bombardments carried out by Thailand’s F-16 aircraft,” the interior ministry said in a statement, giving the total number of people evacuated as 518,611.

Around 400,000 people have been displaced in Thailand due to the

reignited border conflict

The renewed fighting between the South-east Asian neighbours this month, including with tanks, drones and artillery, has killed at least 22 people in Thailand and 19 in Cambodia, according to officials.

The conflict stems from a territorial dispute over the colonial-era demarcation of their 800km border and a smattering of ancient temple ruins situated on the frontier.

Each side has blamed the other for instigating the fresh fighting and traded accusations of attacks on civilians, after five days of clashes in July killed dozens.

China, the European Union, the United States, the ASEAN regional bloc chair Malaysia and the United Nations have all called for a ceasefire.

Foreign ministers of ASEAN nations, including Cambodia and Thailand, are

set to meet on Dec 22