A Buddhist pagoda near the Cambodian-Thai frontier was struck twice within five months, transforming a once peaceful sanctuary into a conflict-scarred site and underscoring mounting insecurity for Buddhism along the volatile border. Prasat Ta Mone Senchey Pagoda, located in Kok Mon commune, Banteay Ampil district near the Tamone Temple complex, was left almost completely destroyed after heavy shelling during the second round of hostilities in early December 2025, according to a senior member of the clergy. Monk aka Acharya Toeuk Bunthoeun, head of the pagoda’s clergy committee, recounted scenes of panic as explosions erupted shortly after 6am while he was…
Author: Raksmey Hong
Inside a tent converted into a classroom at the Wat Kandoul Safety Center in Banteay Meanchey province, dozens of children recite their lessons while seated on simple mats — a fragile substitute for the schools they were forced to abandon when conflict erupted along the Cambodia–Thailand border. Among them is Heak Nita, a sixth grader from Boeung Trakuon Primary School, now studying at the shelter while worrying about falling behind. “It is easier to study at home than at this centre because at school there are comfortable tables and chairs,” she said. “When I went home, I meet my family,…
The EU and UNICEF have delivered more than 30 tonnes of emergency humanitarian supplies to families displaced by the ongoing border crisis, providing critical support to an estimated 15,000 people — most of them women and children — across four northwestern provinces. Senior officials, including EU ambassador to Cambodia Igor Driesmans, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Dith Tina, Banteay Meanchey governor Oum Reatrey, and UNICEF deputy representative Anirban Chatterjee, joined a distribution operation at Wat Kandoal in Banteay Meanchey province on February 7. The assistance included large tents and tarpaulins to serve as temporary learning and child-friendly spaces, along…
Nearly six weeks after a ceasefire was meant to quiet the guns along the Cambodia–Thailand frontier, coils of barbed wire and concrete culverts now cut across land inside Cambodian territory at the O’Smach International Border Gate — an area once defined by cross-border trade but now marked by deserted markets, damaged homes and lingering fear among residents. Thai troops erected barbed wire and installed large-diameter box culverts 420 metres inside Cambodian territory near boundary marker 15 on December 28, 2025 — just one day after the ceasefire between the two armies took effect. The O’Smach International Border Gate, linking Samrong…
Cambodia has stepped up efforts to frame its border dispute with Thailand within the framework of international law and human rights, as Senior Minister Keo Remy met with a senior US judge and outlined what he described as serious violations committed by Thai forces despite an existing ceasefire. Remy, president of the Cambodian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), held February 5 talks with John C. Coughenour, senior US district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, at the commission’s hearing room in Phnom Penh. The meeting focused on the ongoing Cambodia–Thailand border dispute, with Cambodia…
A new Australia-funded agricultural initiative aimed at strengthening climate resilience and promoting social inclusion was officially launched in Kratie province on February 5, with more than 9,000 people expected to benefit from improved farming systems and market access. The Building Climate-Adaptive Solutions through Inclusive Market Networks (BASIN) project is being implemented by World Vision International in Cambodia with support from the Australian government through the Mekong-Australia Partnership. Running until April 2029, the programme seeks to build inclusive, climate-resilient agricultural value chains while empowering women, persons with disabilities and marginalised households. According to World Vision, the initiative will directly support communities…
Thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs) affected by the Cambodia–Thailand border conflict have received psychosocial care and financial assistance through a joint humanitarian response led by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) in partnership with World Vision International in Cambodia. More than 14,470 displaced persons in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces were provided with psychosocial support services, with the programme prioritising vulnerable groups, including over 2,200 women and 11,400 children who have faced trauma linked to violence, displacement and prolonged uncertainty. In addition, 1,300 IDPs received multi-purpose cash assistance, allowing families to address urgent needs such as…
Cambodian demining officials have warned that cluster munitions fired by Thai soldiers during recent border fighting are continuing to endanger civilians, contaminating tens of thousands of hectares of residential land and farmland in the northwest province of Banteay Meanchey. Brigadier General Neth Ratha, head of Demining Unit 1 of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), outlined the scale of the threat while speaking to reporters near the O’Chrov district office on February 4. He said the weapons have affected more than 30,000 hectares of land, disrupting communities and livelihoods across the province. The contamination stems from fighting linked to what…
Nearly two months after fighting broke out along the Thai-Cambodian border, thousands of residents remain unable to return home. Many are living in temporary safety centres while military obstacles and security risks continue to bar access to their villages. At the Wat Kandoul Safety Centre in Thma Puok district, rows of tents shelter families whose lives were abruptly overturned. Among them is 63-year-old Chhuy Ty from Samaki village in the Boeung Trakuon area, who fled on December 8, 2025, first to the Banteay Neang safety centre before being relocated to Wat Kandoul on January 5. “Although my house is outside…
Cambodia’s border ring road project has reportedly reached more than 72 per cent completion after just over a year of construction, with Mondulkiri province nearing full delivery by March 2026. Large-scale landmine clearance has paved the way for further infrastructure development along the northeastern frontier. According to a February 2 government press release, the project — funded through the Border Infrastructure Construction Fund — has achieved an overall completion rate of 72.29 per cent since work began in December 2024. Progress has been uneven across provinces, with Mondulkiri recording 91.2 per cent completion, compared to 51.81 per cent in neighbouring…