PinnedUpdated July 24, 2025, 6:41 a.m. ETA monthslong standoff between Cambodia and Thailand turned into a deadly exchange of fire along their contested border on Thursday that killed at least 11 civilians and a soldier, according to Thai officials.Both nations accused the other of striking first, in the worst hostilities between the Southeast Asian neighbors in more than a decade.The Thai army said that Cambodia had fired rockets into civilian areas in four Thai provinces, prompting Thailand to send F-16 fighter jets to strike targets in Cambodia and order the evacuation of border areas. The clashes killed at least 11 Thai civilians and one soldier, and injured 24 civilians and seven soldiers, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health said.Cambodian officials, who did not immediately confirm reports of casualties, said that Thai soldiers had opened fire on Cambodian troops first, at Prasat Ta Muen Thom, a temple claimed by both nations. It said Cambodian forces returned fire some 15 minutes later.The tensions began in late May after the death of a Cambodian soldier in a border skirmish between troops from both sides. The dispute escalated on Wednesday when a Thai soldier lost his leg in a land mine explosion at the border.Thailand’s prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who has been suspended from office amid the crisis but remains leader of the country’s governing party, condemned what she called Cambodian aggression. She said on social media that Cambodian forces had “initiated the use of arms and fired into Thai territory — impacting both officials and innocent civilians.”Prime Minister Hun Manet of Cambodia said in a statement that his nation had “no choice but to respond with armed force against this armed invasion.”Here’s what else to know:Last major clash: In 2011, a week of fighting in territory disputed between the two nations killed at least 15 people, including civilians, and displaced tens of thousands of people.Thailand’s political crisis: The conflict with Cambodia led to Ms. Paetongtarn’s suspension from office. Last month, Hun Sen, a powerful former Cambodian prime minister who is the father of the country’s current leader, leaked a recording of a private phone call he had with Ms. Paetongtarn in which she referred to him deferentially as “uncle” and made disparaging remarks about the Thai military.Protests and a crumbling coalition: The second-largest member of Ms. Paetongtarn’s governing coalition, the Bhumjaithai Party, withdrew last month as legal challenges piled up against her. Thousands of people took to the streets of Bangkok in late June to call for Ms. Paetongtarn’s resignation.Shinawatra dynasty: Mr. Hun Sen had close ties with Thaksin Shinawatra, Ms. Paetongtarn’s father. The family has produced four prime ministers, including Mr. Thaksin, who was ousted by a military coup in 2006. Read more ›China’s role: The fighting between Thailand and Cambodia presents a potential diplomatic opening for Beijing, which has increased its economic and political influence in both countries at a time when governments in Southeast Asia are becoming increasingly wary of the United States. A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, Guo Jiakun, said on Thursday that Beijing was “deeply concerned” by the skirmishes and that Beijing had been working to facilitate talks between the two sides.A correction was made on July 24, 2025: An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of a Cambodian spokesperson. It is Chhum Socheat, not Chuum Socheat.When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. If you spot an error, please let us know at nytnews@nytimes.com.Learn moreJuly 24, 2025, 6:52 a.m. ETSun NarinReporting from CambodiaCambodian officials have held a news conference repeating their assertions that Thailand instigated the deadly fighting on Thursday. A spokeswoman for the Defense Ministry, Maly Socheata, said that Thai soldiers had opened fire before 9 a.m. and that Cambodian troops had fired back. She said the clashes took place at eight locations in the disputed area and accused Thailand of attacking military zones as well as civilian areas, although she did not say whether there had been any casualties.Pen Bona, a government spokesman, said that Cambodia had not laid new land mines in the area where a Thai soldier lost his leg on Wednesday, an episode that set off the latest fighting. “Thailand ignited the clash,” he said.July 24, 2025, 6:42 a.m. ETKittiphum SringammuangReporting from BangkokThailand’s Second Army Division said that four Thai F-16 fighter jets had launched a second round of attacks against the Cambodian Army at 4:30 p.m., south of the Ta Muen Thom temple claimed by both countries.July 24, 2025, 6:31 a.m. ETAn elevated track that is part of the Bangkok-Nong Khai high-speed railway project in Thailand, which was funded by China.Credit...Jack Taylor/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesThe fighting between Thailand and Cambodia presents a potential diplomatic opening for China, which has increased its economic and political influence in both countries at a time when governments in Southeast Asia are becoming increasingly wary of the United States.China is both countries’ largest trading partner and has invested heavily in infrastructure in each. In Thailand, it is helping the government build a railway to connect Bangkok and southwestern China. In Cambodia, China is building a huge airport and has financed the construction of government buildings and the country’s first-ever expressway.Thailand’s prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, visited Beijing in February and pledged to expand law enforcement cooperation with China. Weeks later, the Thai government deported 40 Uyghur asylum seekers to China at Beijing’s request — despite intense international pressure not to do so, given concerns that the Uyghurs, a persecuted minority in China, would be tortured or detained upon their return.In Cambodia, Beijing’s influence is even clearer. China’s leader, Xi Jinping, recently ended a tour of Southeast Asia with a state visit to the country, where top officials often refer to China as their “greatest friend.” Beijing has refurbished a naval base in Cambodia, where Chinese warships now dock. A major boulevard in the capital, Phnom Penh, was recently named for Mr. Xi.The Chinese-funded Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport in Siem Reap, Cambodia.Credit...Getty ImagesAt the same time, American influence in the region has been strained, especially by President Trump’s trade wars. Mr. Trump has threatened to impose steep tariffs on imports from both Thailand and Cambodia, making it easier for Mr. Xi to court them.Chinese officials have sometimes explicitly drawn a contrast between Beijing’s warm ties with the countries and their relations with the United States. This month, China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, met with Cambodia’s deputy prime minister, Prak Sokhonn, and criticized U.S. tariffs as “an attempt to deprive all parties of their legitimate rights to development,” according to a Chinese government readout.Mr. Wang also promised to play a “constructive role” in negotiations between Cambodia and Thailand in their border dispute, which had been simmering for weeks before the exchange of fire.A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, Guo Jiakun, reiterated that sentiment on Thursday. Asked about the skirmishes at a regular news briefing, Mr. Guo said China was “deeply concerned.” He said that both Thailand and Cambodia were “friendly neighbors” of China and that Beijing had been working to promote peace and facilitate talks.July 24, 2025, 6:24 a.m. ETFootage released by Thailand’s public broadcaster on Thursday shows thick smoke billowing from a gas station convenience store in the Kantharalak district of Sisaket Province, near the Cambodian border. The Thai army said the station had been hit by Cambodian rocket fire, causing six deaths and 10 injuries. The footage shows firefighters working to put out the blaze. Other video posted online and verified by The New York Times shows civilians rushing to leave the burning site, and at least one motionless body on the back of a pickup truck.VideoCreditCredit...TPBS, via ReutersJuly 24, 2025, 5:49 a.m. ETKittiphum SringammuangReporting from BangkokThailand’s acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, alleged that Cambodian forces had targeted civilian areas in Thailand. Schools in the border area had been closed and field hospitals were being set up for the wounded, he said at a meeting of the country’s National Security Council. He added that the clashes did not appear to be spreading to other areas.July 24, 2025, 5:02 a.m. ETKittiphum SringammuangReporting from BangkokThe clashes killed at least 11 Thai civilians and one soldier, and injured 24 civilians and seven soldiers, Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health said in a statement.July 24, 2025, 5:23 a.m. ETKittiphum SringammuangReporting from BangkokSomsak Thepsuthin, Thailand’s public health minister, said in statement that Cambodia had attacked a hospital. The accusation could not be independently confirmed.July 24, 2025, 3:19 a.m. ETThe Thai army said that nine civilians have been killed in the clashes with Cambodia and 14 injured.July 24, 2025, 2:46 a.m. ETA Thai soldier and a Cambodian soldier standing guard at an ancient Khmer temple along the disputed Cambodian-Thai border in Oddar Meanchey Province in March.Credit...Tang Chhin Sothy/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesCambodian and Thai troops engaged in deadly clashes on Thursday along their contested and heavily patrolled border, prompting evacuations of residents and unraveling diplomatic relations between the Southeast Asian neighbors. Thai officials said that at least a dozen people were killed.The two countries have a long-running nationalist rivalry and military clashes have occasionally turned deadly. Here is a timeline of the tensions:1907The border disputes can be traced back to a 1907 map created during French colonial rule in Cambodia. The map was the basis of Cambodia’s claims to certain parts of the border, but its vagueness led to conflicting interpretations, and Thailand contested it.The countries tried to resolve the dispute diplomatically, but the issue was never settled completely, even after transnational bodies like the International Court of Justice intervened in 1962. At stake were areas like centuries-old historical temples.2008-11Military fighting has broken out intermittently since 2008. The last time tensions turned deadly was in 2011, when the fighting focused on a jungle border area including ancient temples to which both sides had laid claim. Each side blamed the other for starting and prolonging the fighting.The two nations declared a cease-fire after seven days of fighting killed at least 15 people and displaced tens of thousands of civilians. That same year, a United Nations court ordered the two nations to withdraw troops and establish a demilitarized zone, but the court left unresolved who would control a larger disputed territory, where troops kept clashing.May 28, 2025The border dispute worsened again earlier this year. In a skirmish between the two countries, a Cambodian soldier was killed. The soldier’s death brought the relations between the countries to the lowest point in years.June 15Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra of Thailand spoke with Cambodia’s de facto leader, Hun Sen. The call was meant to resolve the tensions between the two countries.June 18A recording of the call that Mr. Hun Sen posted to his Facebook page ignited an outcry in Thailand. Ms. Paetongtarn urged him to ignore the Thai military, referring to it as “the opposite side,” and called him “uncle.” She also offered to “arrange” anything that he wanted.Her comments drew condemnation from Thai lawmakers, both in her coalition and the opposition. They said she appeared to disparage her own country’s military and took too much of a deferential tone with another country’s leader. Thai leaders called on her to resign.July 1Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended Ms. Paetongtarn, accepting a petition to the court brought by a group of senators who sought her removal and accused her of violating ethics standards in her call with Mr. Hun Sen.She apologized again and said personal gain had not been the purpose of her conversation with Mr. Hun Sen.July 23A Thai soldier lost his right leg in a land mine explosion. Thailand said it would downgrade diplomatic relations with Cambodia, recalling its ambassador to Cambodia and expelling Cambodia’s ambassador.July 24, 2025, 2:38 a.m. ETThe last time that a major clash between Cambodia and Thailand turned deadly was in 2011, when about a week of fighting in disputed territory killed at least 15 people, including civilians, and displaced tens of thousands of civilians.July 24, 2025, 2:22 a.m. ETThailand’s army says all its F-16 fighter aircraft have returned safely after striking two Cambodian targets.July 24, 2025, 2:04 a.m. ETSun NarinReporting from CambodiaCambodia’s leader, Hun Manet, called on the president of the U.N. Security Council to convene an urgent meeting to stop what he called “Thailand’s aggression.”July 24, 2025, 1:59 a.m. ETThaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister who has been a force in Thai politics for more than two decades, on social media blamed Hun Sen, the de facto Cambodian leader, for initiating the fighting.Shinawatra is the father of Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the recently suspended Thai prime minister.July 24, 2025, 1:58 a.m. ETAt least one Thai civilian was killed after Cambodian troops opened fire along the border in Surin Province, Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a Thai government spokesman, said in a news conference. Three civilians, including a 5-year-old boy, were seriously injured, he added. The spokesman said Cambodian troops had fired heavy weapons including rocket launchers and artillery, damaging homes and public buildings.Credit...Royal Thai Army, via Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesJuly 24, 2025, 1:15 a.m. ETSui-Lee Wee and Kittiphum SringammuangReporting from BangkokThailand’s army says it now has F-16s planes engaging with targets in Cambodia.July 24, 2025, 1:03 a.m. ETIn a statement posted to social media, Cambodian officials confirmed the attack and condemned the “brutal military aggression” of Thailand on Cambodian sovereignty.July 24, 2025, 12:50 a.m. ETTensions between Thailand and Cambodia rose significantly this week after a Thai soldier lost his right leg when a land mine exploded near the border. Thailand said it would downgrade diplomatic relations with Cambodia, recalling its ambassador to Cambodia and expelling Cambodia’s ambassador.July 24, 2025, 12:50 a.m. ETCivilians ran for cover as the sound of gunfire rang through the air in Surin Province, Thailand, near the border of Cambodia. Each nation accuses the other of firing the first shots.Videotranscriptbars0:00/0:13-0:00transcript[gunshots]CreditCredit...TPBS, via Associated Press