Thailand declares martial law in border districts as conflict with Cambodia worsens

Thailand declared martial law in eight districts bordering Cambodia on Friday as a dispute between the two neighbours continues to worsen.

"Martial law is now in effect" in seven districts of Chanthaburi and one district of Trat, commander of the Border Defence Command, Apichart Sapprasert, said in a statement.

The declaration was made to safeguard national sovereignty, territorial integrity and the lives and property of Thai citizens, the statement also said.

Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have hit their lowest point in more than a decade, with both sides trading fire and air strikes since Thursday and tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border moving away from the conflict zone.

The UN Security Council said it would hold an emergency meeting to discuss the escalating crisis later on Friday.

Over 58,000 people fled their homes from four affected Thai border provinces and sought refuge in temporary shelters, the Thai Health Ministry said on Friday.

Meanwhile, local authorities in Cambodia said more than 4,000 were evacuated from areas near the border.

The two sides fired small arms, artillery and rockets at each other, which Thailand said killed one Thai soldier and 13 civilians and wounded at least 14 soldiers and 32 civilians.

Cambodia reported its first death from the fighting on Friday.

Thailand has also launched airstrikes at Cambodia, reportedly involving one of its six US-made F-16 fighter jets.

The fighting began on Thursday morning close to the ancient Ta Muen Thom temple, beside the border between Thailand’s Surin province and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province.

It comes after months of heightened tensions between the neighbours, following the death of a Cambodian soldier in a border skirmish in May.

The Thai army said six armed Cambodian soldiers opened fire near one of its military stations on Thursday, while Cambodia blamed Thailand for causing the latest clashes.

In a statement published on Thursday, Cambodia's foreign ministry said it "condemns in the strongest possible terms this reckless and hostile act by Thailand," urging its neighbour to cease hostilities.

Thailand's foreign ministry also issued a similar message, in which it encouraged Cambodia to bring the flare-up to an end.

"The Royal Thai Government calls upon Cambodia to take responsibility for the incidents that have occurred, cease attacks against civilian and military targets, and stop all actions that violate Thailand's sovereignty," it said.

Both Cambodia and Thailand have downgraded diplomatic relations since Wednesday, with Cambodia recalling its diplomatic staff and expelling the Thai ambassador on Thursday.

Thailand also sealed all land border crossings with Cambodia, following a land mine blast on Wednesday that injured five Thai soldiers, one of whom lost a leg.

Thai authorities claim that Cambodian troops have recently laid mines in previously safe areas, something Cambodia strongly rejects, saying that they are the legacy of old wars and unrest.

There have also been major political consequences in Thailand, with former prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended from office last month after making what critics saw as a disparaging comment about her country’s military in a phone call to Cambodia’s former Prime Minister Hun Sen, who leaked a recording of it.

The border dispute between the two countries started more than a century ago, following the end of France's occupation of Cambodia.