Thai and Cambodian soldiers fought with rocket-propelled grenades and guns on their disputed border on Friday in a clash that killed six soldiers in the first major flare-up since a shaky cease-fire in February. Both countries evacuated thousands of villagers and accused each other of firing first in the thick, disputed jungle around Ta Moan and Ta Krabei temples in the north-eastern Thai province of Surin, about 150 km (93 miles) south-west of the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple, which saw a deadly stand-off in February.
"Cambodia started attacking our temporary base with artillery fire and we responded to defend ourselves," said Lieutenant General Thawatchai Samutsakorn of the Thai army. Three Thai paramilitary rangers were killed and 13 wounded, said Thai army spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong, adding that fighting began after Cambodian troops altered a bunker in the area and moved closer in violation of a cease-fire pact. "When warned, Cambodian troops stepped closer and started firing," she said.
Cambodia suffered three fatalities, with six soldiers wounded. Defence ministry spokesman, Lieutenant General Chhum Socheat said at a news conference that Thai artillery shells had hit four Cambodian villages and Cambodian troops responded with rocket-propelled grenades.
Soon after the clashes subsided, Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council in New York, accusing Thailand of launching a "blatant" and "large-scale attack". A witness in one Thai village said occasional gunshots and shelling could still be heard hours after the clash. The heaviest fighting that broke out around daybreak had stopped after three hours, Chhum Socheat added. As a precaution, Thailand's government evacuated about 7,500 villagers, while Cambodian authorities moved several thousand people out of the area.