Cambodia launches rocket at Thai gas station, killing 6 | WATCH
Border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia erupted into deadly violence Thursday, with Cambodian BM-21 rocket strikes hitting Thai civilian targets—including a gas station and hospital—killing at least six and injuring dozens. Thailand responded with F-16 airstrikes as both nations trade blame for the escalation.
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A gas station in Thailand’s Sisaket province was struck by BM-21 rockets launched by Cambodian forces on Thursday morning, igniting a fire and causing multiple casualties as border clashes with Thai troops intensified, according to regional reports.
The attack, which hit a convenience store at the station in Kantharalak district, is part of a broader escalation near the disputed Ta Muean Thom temple, where both nations accuse each other of firing first. Thai authorities report at least six deaths and 10 injuries from the strike, with footage showing firefighters battling the blaze and a motionless body on a pickup truck, per *The New York Times*. Cambodian forces, reportedly using Soviet-era 122mm RM-70 Grad/BM-21-1 multiple rocket launchers, also targeted civilian areas, including the Phanom Dong Rak Hospital in Surin province, which sustained severe damage, according to X posts claiming the attack began around 10:42 AM.
The conflict, rooted in a century-old dispute over the 817-kilometer border, saw Thailand retaliate with F-16 airstrikes on Cambodian military targets, killing at least 11 Thai civilians and one soldier, including an eight-year-old boy, per *Reuters*. Cambodia denies initiating the violence, with its Defense Ministry claiming Thai troops provoked the clash at 08:46 AM, while Thailand alleges Cambodian drone surveillance and troop movements with heavy weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades, triggered the fighting at 07:35 AM.
X posts suggest Cambodian forces fired additional BM-21 salvos into Surin and Buriram provinces, hitting residential areas and wounding civilians, with one post noting a hospital and a 7-Eleven at a PTT gas station among the targets. Thailand has closed its border, evacuated 40,000 people, and deployed six F-16s, while Cambodia has downgraded diplomatic ties and expelled Thai diplomats.
The official narrative from Bangkok condemns Cambodia’s “inhumane” actions, including alleged hospital attacks, as war crimes, but Phnom Penh insists its response was self-defense. Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, as ASEAN chair, is mediating, urging de-escalation.
Meanwhile, Israel's Foreign Ministry has issued a travel warning for the region.