Cambodia’s defence ministry said Thailand’s military carried out an airstrike on Thursday, dropping bombs on the casino hub of Poipet, a key land border crossing between the two countries amid renewed clashes along their frontier.
In a statement, the ministry said Thai forces dropped two bombs in Poipet Municipality, Banteay Meanchey Province, at around 11am local time. As of early Thursday afternoon, Thai authorities had not commented on the alleged strike.
The latest incident comes amid escalating tensions between the Southeast Asian neighbours, with renewed fighting this month reportedly killing at least 21 people in Thailand and 17 in Cambodia, and forcing about 800,000 people to flee their homes, according to officials from both sides.
The conflict is rooted in a long-running territorial dispute over the colonial-era demarcation of their 800-kilometre border, as well as several ancient temple sites located along the frontier.
Both governments have accused each other of triggering the latest violence, insisting their actions were in self-defence and trading allegations of attacks on civilians.
Earlier, Cambodia’s interior ministry said at least four casinos in the country had been damaged by Thai strikes since fighting erupted on Dec 7.
