Thai, Cambodia troops clash near disputed temple

Thai and Cambodian soldiers exchanged rifle and rocket fire on their disputed border near an ancient Hindu temple on Friday, but there were no reports of casualties, officials from both countries said.

Thai and Cambodian soldiers exchanged rifle and rocket fire on their disputed border near an ancient Hindu temple on Friday, but there were no reports of casualties, officials from both countries said.

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"The armed clash began when Thai soldiers entered Cambodian territory. We fired rockets at the Thai soldiers," Cambodia's government spokesman Phay Siphan told Reuters.

In Bangkok, Thai Major General Kanok NetraKaveysana confirmed there had been a brief firefight early in the morning, but he had no reports of wounded or dead.

"It was a misunderstanding and it has been resolved," he said, without explaining further.

The fighting erupted a day after a Thai soldier was badly wounded when he stepped on a landmine near the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple, where both sides have stationed troops since armed clashes in the area last year.

Tensions rose last month when 100 Thai troops crossed into a disputed area near the temple and were stopped by Cambodian soldiers, but no fighting occurred. The border had been quiet for months while the Southeast Asian neighbours sought to jointly demarcate the jungle-clad area where one Thai and three Cambodian soldiers died in last year's exchange of rifle and rocket fire.

The International Court of Justice awarded it to Cambodia in 1962, but the ruling did not determine the ownership of 1.8 square miles (4.6 sq km) of scrub next to the ruins, leaving considerable scope for disagreement.