The Thai military has used heavy weapons, including fighter jets and cluster munitions, to attack Cambodian territory and deliberately targeted civilians over the past eight days, according to Minister of Information Neth Pheaktra. “Over the past eight days of armed aggression, the Thai military has deliberately targeted civilians, including civilian homes, villages, roads and bridges, schools, hospitals and Buddhist temples,” Pheaktra said, in a December 14 social media post. He said the use of aerial bombardment, cluster bombs and toxic smoke had caused severe civilian casualties. As of December 14, 2025, the attacks had killed 11 Cambodian civilians, including one…
Author: Raksmey Hong
As fighting along the Cambodia–Thailand border forces tens of thousands of families from their homes, the country’s education system is facing an emergency of its own, with nearly 209,000 students affected by school closures and months of learning already lost in frontline provinces. Many children, particularly in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces, have missed three to four months of schooling due to repeated disruptions linked to border tensions, according to World Vision International in Cambodia. The situation worsened during the latest wave of displacement between December 7 and 13, when families fled shelling and sought refuge in evacuation centres…
A group of journalists from eight organisations took part in distributing fresh milk, snacks and essential supplies to displaced children and families at the Wat Dach Phreat sanctuary in Bavel district, Battambang province. The generous December 14 activity was carried out with the journalists’ own funds, with additional support from friends and relatives. The initiative was led by Soyanerayrat Thunn, an adviser to the Ministry of Information. “This is a small contribution from myself and my friends and relatives who have compassion for the affected children,” Thunn said. “We wanted the children to receive additional food and feel that they…
The Ministry of Public Works and Transport confirmed that the Thai military conducted multiple airstrikes on the Victory Bridge in Pursat province’s Veal Veng district early Saturday morning. According to ministry spokesman Phan Rim, two Thai F-16 fighter jets carried out multiple bombing runs targeting the bridge at around 6am this morning. They also struck the “old bridge” next to it. “Thai aircraft have not stopped their bombing activities yet,” Rim said, adding that authorities are monitoring the situation closely. The Victory Bridge, also known as the Main River Bridge, is a concrete structure built by the Chinese CRBC group…
Malaysia will convene a Special ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in the coming days as regional diplomats race to contain rising tensions between Cambodia and Thailand, following a week of deadly cross-border clashes. The move was announced late Friday December 12 by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who said he had spoken directly with US President Donald Trump and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet to urge restraint and a return to peaceful mechanisms under ASEAN and the Kuala Lumpur Joint Declaration. Anwar said Malaysia, as ASEAN chair, stands ready to coordinate de-escalation efforts and protect civilians. “Malaysia remains ready to support…
As explosions rocked the Cambodian–Thai border this week, families fleeing the frontline found themselves relying on what they describe as “double layers of protection”: locally built bunkers, located in specially prepared evacuation centres. At the Kampong Sangke sanctuary in Chheb district, located just 10 kilometres from the fighting zone, an aid worker said fear among children remained extreme despite reaching what is supposed to be a safe area. Kin Soksan, a World Vision field worker who is assisting displaced families, said the bunkers, built by local residents, have become essential psychological and physical protection for those who escaped shelling in…
The Cambodian Ministry of National Defence has issued a series of rebuttals over the past several days, accusing multiple Thai media outlets and official Thai military channels of spreading “false, fabricated and malicious” information amid ongoing armed clashes along the border from December 7 to 12 — as we enter the fifth consecutive day of Thai airstrikes and artillery attacks on Cambodian territory. In a string of public statements, the defence ministry denounced what it described as a !coordinated disinformation campaign” designed to distort the situation on the ground, shift blame and justify Thailand’s escalating use of force. One of…
Families fleeing O’Smach described an escape defined by fear, scarcity yet an unshakable sense of solidarity, as five households from Chamkar Chek village clung together on a homemade tractor and now share a single small pot to cook their meals inside the Wat Bo Knar Techo sanctuary. More than ten people — ranging from an 80-year-old grandfather to a nine-month-pregnant woman — squeezed onto the tractor after Thai military strikes intensified around their village. The roar of artillery and gunfire pushed them into the open, but even in the chaos, the villagers said leaving one another behind was never an…
Families from some of the most vulnerable communities in Preah Vihear province are fleeing in growing numbers to a designated sanctuary near the Cambodia–Laos border, as Thai air and artillery attacks continue for a fourth day. Among them is 29-year-old Ho Laihun, a mother of three from Teuk Kraham in Rong Reung 5 village, Choam Khsant district, who escaped after Thai F-16 aircraft struck near her home on Monday. She said the sudden roar of fighter jets and explosions sent villagers running. “It was the most frightening moment of my life,” she said. “I grabbed my children and ran. I…
Cambodia has formally asked the UN Security Council to take urgent action over what it described as “a series of unprovoked and escalating armed attacks” by Thai forces along their shared border, elevating the dispute from a bilateral conflict to an international security issue. In a December 10 letter to the Security Council president, Keo Chhea, Cambodian Permanent Representative to the UN, accused the Thai armed forces of violating the UN Charter, international humanitarian law, and existing ceasefire and peace agreements by launching cross-border military operations into Cambodian territory. The appeal comes after several days of intensifying clashes in border…