Arrested Thai soldiers, wearing black, sit with Cambodian soldiers after the firefight. In addition to the two Cambodian soldiers killed, three were injured, and five Thai soldiers were injured.Gulf Daily News
PHNOM PENH: Two Cambodian soldiers were killed yesterday in a border gunbattle with Thai troops, increasing the risk that long-standing tensions over territorial claims could escalate into outright war.Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said that two others had been wounded in fighting near an 11th-century temple that lasted less than an hour.
The Cambodian army captured 10 Thai soldiers who would be returned if Bangkok requested, he said.
Thai army said that five of its soldiers were wounded. The fighting stopped and commanders from both sides were trying to negotiate a ceasefire.
"Cambodia is a good neighbour. We will use peaceful means. If there is violence, we have to negotiate," Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat said.
The Thai army also stated its desire to end the dispute peacefully.
Both sides said that the other fired first. It was not immediately clear how many troops were engaged in the shooting
The clash came a day after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen issued an ultimatum to Thailand to pull back its soldiers from the disputed territory near the Preah Vihear temple.
The fighting was the latest in the decades-long dispute over a stretch of jungle near the temple. The World Court awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962, but sovereignty over some surrounding land has never been resolved.
Tensions flared on July 15 after Unesco approved Cambodia's bid to have the temple named a World Heritage Site, leading some in Thailand to fear that its claims over the nearby land would be undermined.
Cambodia deployed more than 800 troops to the border after the Unesco decision, and Thailand sent 400. Both sides pulled back most of troops in August.
PHNOM PENH: Two Cambodian soldiers were killed yesterday in a border gunbattle with Thai troops, increasing the risk that long-standing tensions over territorial claims could escalate into outright war.Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said that two others had been wounded in fighting near an 11th-century temple that lasted less than an hour.
The Cambodian army captured 10 Thai soldiers who would be returned if Bangkok requested, he said.
Thai army said that five of its soldiers were wounded. The fighting stopped and commanders from both sides were trying to negotiate a ceasefire.
"Cambodia is a good neighbour. We will use peaceful means. If there is violence, we have to negotiate," Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat said.
The Thai army also stated its desire to end the dispute peacefully.
Both sides said that the other fired first. It was not immediately clear how many troops were engaged in the shooting
The clash came a day after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen issued an ultimatum to Thailand to pull back its soldiers from the disputed territory near the Preah Vihear temple.
The fighting was the latest in the decades-long dispute over a stretch of jungle near the temple. The World Court awarded the temple to Cambodia in 1962, but sovereignty over some surrounding land has never been resolved.
Tensions flared on July 15 after Unesco approved Cambodia's bid to have the temple named a World Heritage Site, leading some in Thailand to fear that its claims over the nearby land would be undermined.
Cambodia deployed more than 800 troops to the border after the Unesco decision, and Thailand sent 400. Both sides pulled back most of troops in August.
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