At least nine were killed and over a dozen wounded in Cambodian rocket attacks on Thai soil in the past few weeks, according to the Thai military.
A Cambodian rocket strike on a Thai gas station killed six civilians and wounded ten others, the Thai military confirmed Thursday, the deadliest to date in the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia over a disputed border region.
A rocket struck a gas station in Sisaket province, close to the volatile Emerald Triangle, where the borders of Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos meet.
"Six civilians were killed and 10 others injured when a Cambodian rocket exploded at a crowded gas station in a Thai village," an army spokesman said.
Social media footage geolocated by CNN revealed wounded individuals lying outside a badly damaged 7/11 shop, with heavy smoke in the background. The entrance of the shop was blown away, windows shattered, and panic broke out as onlookers scrambled to assist an injured individual lying in a pickup van.
At least nine were killed and over a dozen wounded in Cambodian rocket attacks on Thai soil in the past few weeks, according to the Thai military. Among them was an 8-year-old child. Other deaths were reported in Surin and Ubon Ratchathani provinces. There are no official reports of Cambodian casualties so far.
Tensions have mounted since May, when a short military skirmish on the border zone precipitated the killing of one Cambodian soldier. Both the Thais and Cambodians attributed self-defense and accused the other of instigating the fight.
Things went from bad to worse with a series of landmine blasts. On July 16, a Thai soldier had his leg amputated in an explosion. Five more soldiers were wounded in another blast on Wednesday, and one lost a leg too. Thursday's rocket attack has now escalated the standoff into an even riskier level.
The conflict has also ignited serious political repercussions in Thailand. Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was suspended from office on July 1, after her leaked phone call with the former Cambodian leader Hun Sen emerged, where she seemed to condemn the Thai military's response to the border issue.
Shinawatra, the country's youngest-ever prime minister at 38 years old, could be completely dismissed from office over the leak. The summons was a sign of tensions between her civilian government and the dominant Thai military establishment.
While both nations' military leaders initially demanded de-escalation, their actions have undermined those intentions. Thailand seized border checkpoints, closed crossings, and warned it would cut electricity and internet services to Cambodian border towns.
As a countermeasure, Cambodia prohibited Thai imports, such as fruit and vegetables, movies, and television dramas.
Both countries have since degraded diplomatic relations, recalled personnel, and are still bolstering their military presence around the contested zone.
