Yesterday Thailand launched air strikes in the border region, stating that it was targeting Cambodian military facilities believed to house long-range artillery. Within hours, thousands of civilians were being evacuated. Thai officials reported roughly 385,000 people had been moved to shelters, while Cambodian authorities claimed about 1,100 families had been displaced. Both sides accused the other of initiating the renewed hostilities, though the immediate trigger for the escalation remained unclear. Leaders in Malaysia and Japan issued rapid calls for de-escalation.

Following an escalation of violence in July, an “immediate and unconditional ceasefire” was agreed upon on July 28. But relations deteriorated again within months. On November 11 Thailand announced that it would halt implementation of the ceasefire agreement after several of its soldiers were injured in a land-mine explosion along the border. Cambodia denied laying new land mines. The following day at least one person was killed in Cambodia amid renewed gunfire, and the two countries accused each other of shooting first. As in the previous incident, details were scarce and the circumstances surrounding the clash remained uncertain.

A Thai foreign ministry spokesperson, citing the November incident, stated that Cambodia had “trampled” the ceasefire agreement, while a Thai general said that the aim of yesterday’s air strikes was to cripple Cambodia’s military capacity. In all, the dispute—which emerged from competing claims to ancient temples and their surrounding land—has resulted in dozens of deaths and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians this year.