Cambodia evacuated 250 families from Prey Chan village in Banteay Meanchey province on Thursday after a fatal shooting incident on the disputed border with Thailand left one villager dead and three wounded. The clash erupted Wednesday, escalating a crisis triggered days earlier when a Thai soldier lost a foot to a landmine, prompting Bangkok to suspend a fragile ceasefire partially mediated by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

The landmine blast on Monday led Thailand to accuse Cambodia of planting new explosives in violation of the truce, a charge Phnom Penh vehemently denied. In response, Thailand demanded an apology, a full investigation, and preventive measures while indefinitely halting compliance with the agreement. The October ceasefire, intended to stabilize the border after deadly July clashes that killed dozens, has failed to address longstanding territorial disputes rooted in a contested 1907 French colonial map.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet condemned what he described as “repeated provocative actions” by Thai forces aimed at instigating conflict, insisting Cambodia remains committed to the truce. He called for an independent probe into the shooting, which he said originated from Thai aggression. Thailand’s army countered that Cambodian troops fired first from civilian areas into Sa Kaeo province, labeling the tactic a violation of humanitarian law and the use of human shields.

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The evacuated villagers were relocated 30 kilometers away to a Buddhist temple for safety, as a joint ceasefire monitoring team—including ASEAN officials—inspected the border under Cambodia’s Defense Ministry. The same village witnessed a non-lethal confrontation in September between Thai security forces and local residents, underscoring the area’s volatility. Historical enmity between the two nations, once rival empires, continues to fuel distrust.

At the heart of the dispute lies the 1962 International Court of Justice ruling granting Cambodia sovereignty over the ancient Preah Vihear temple, a decision that still inflames nationalist sentiments in Thailand. With the truce unraveling and no clear mechanism to resolve core territorial claims, the risk of broader conflict looms over Southeast Asia’s volatile frontier.

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