First civilians killed in Thailand as conflict with Cambodia erupts again following ceasefire | World News

The first civilians have been killed in Thailand as the conflict with Cambodia erupted again, days after a ceasefire pushed by Donald Trump.

Three Thai civilians were killed as heavy fighting continued along the border, the Thai military said on Thursday.

Nine Thai soldiers have so far been killed in the conflict, and more than 120 have been wounded.

Cambodia said nine civilians have been killed, including a baby, and 46 others have been wounded.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from border areas in both countries.

Clashes at more than a dozen locations along the 508 mile-long (817km) border on Wednesday saw some of the most intense fighting since a five-day battle in July – the worst conflict between the two countries in recent history.

Thailand said a hospital in Surin province was evacuated after rockets landed about 500m away.

It came as both sides waited for a telephone call from Mr Trump, who says he believes he can again end the fighting between the two Southeast Asian nations.

Mr Trump says he expects to speak with the countries’ leaders on Thursday.

Read more from Sky News:
Why did the US seize an oil tanker?
British soldier killed in Ukraine named

In July, Mr Trump stopped the fighting with calls to both leaders in which he threatened to halt trade talks unless they ended the conflict.

“I think I can get them to stop fighting. Who else can do that?” Mr Trump said on Wednesday in an exchange with reporters.

He also repeated his claim of settling eight wars around the world since his return to the White House.

However, Thailand has reacted more warily to overtures from Mr Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who helped broker the July deal, which resulted in an extended ceasefire signed in October.

Thailand insists the matter is for the two nations to resolve.

The roots of the Thai-Cambodian border conflict lie in a history of enmity over competing territorial claims.

These claims largely stem from a 1907 map created while Cambodia was under French colonial rule, which Thailand argues is inaccurate.

Tensions were heightened by a 1962 International Court of Justice ruling that awarded sovereignty to Cambodia, which still angers many Thais.

Despite October’s deal to stop fighting, the two countries carried on a bitter propaganda war, and minor cross-border violence continued.

Malaysian PM Mr Ibrahim said he had talked to the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia on Tuesday and, though no definitive resolution was reached, he appreciated “the openness and willingness of both leaders to continue negotiations in order to ease tensions”.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Thursday he would “explain and clarify” the situation if the US president called.

Thailand and Cambodia have blamed each other for the latest clashes that started this week and have traded accusations that civilians were being targeted in rocket and artillery attacks.

The latest large-scale fighting was sparked by a skirmish on Sunday that wounded two Thai soldiers.

Around two dozen people have been reported killed in the latest fighting, while hundreds of thousands have been displaced on both sides of the border.

Cambodia’s interior ministry said in a Wednesday evening update that homes, schools, roads, pagodas and ancient temples had been damaged by “Thailand’s intensified shelling and F-16 air strikes targeting villages and civilian population centres up to 30km inside Cambodian territory”.

On Thursday, Cambodia’s defence ministry accused Thailand of committing “brutal acts of aggression” against civilian targets, including schools and temples. Thailand denies that it targets civilian infrastructure.