Thailand says another soldier injured by landmine near Cambodia

BANGKOK: A Thai soldier was injured by a landmine near the Cambodian border on Tuesday, the Thai army said, days after the Southeast Asian neighbours agreed a ceasefire following last month's deadly five-day conflict.

AI Brief

A Thai soldier was seriously injured by a landmine near a disputed border temple, marking the fourth such incident recently.
Thailand accuses Cambodia of violating the ceasefire and international treaties, while Cambodia denies planting new mines.
Border clashes have escalated, but a fragile ceasefire is holding with ASEAN observers monitoring the disputed areas.

The soldier's left ankle was severely injured when he stepped on the mine while patrolling along a routine border route about 1 km (0.62 miles) from Ta Moan Thom temple in Thailand's Surin province, the army said in a statement.

The soldier is being treated at a hospital, it said.

The incident is clear evidence that Cambodia has violated the ceasefire as well as international agreements like the Ottawa Convention against landmines, Thai army spokesman Major-General Winthai Suvaree said in the statement.

It was the fourth time in a few weeks that Thai soldiers have been injured by mines during patrols along the border. On Saturday, three soldiers were injured by a landmine in an area between Thailand's Sisaket and Cambodia's Preah Vihear provinces.

Two earlier incidents led to the downgrading of diplomatic relations and triggered the clashes.

Bangkok accused Cambodia of planting landmines on the Thai side of the disputed border that injured soldiers on July 16 and July 23.

Phnom Penh denied it had placed any new mines, saying the soldiers had veered off agreed routes and triggered old landmines left over from decades of war. It said on Saturday that it was a "proud state party" to the Ottawa Convention.

Thailand and Cambodia have bickered for decades over undemarcated points along their 817-km (508-mile) land border, with ownership of the ancient Hindu temples Ta Moan Thom and the 11th-century Preah Vihear central to the disputes.

The latest clashes that started on July 24 were the worst fighting between the countries in more than a decade, and involved exchanges of artillery fire and jet fighter sorties that killed at least 43 and left over 300,000 people displaced on both sides.

The fragile ceasefire has been holding since Thailand and Cambodia agreed last week to allow observers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to inspect disputed border areas, ensuring that hostilities do not resume.