# Cambodia Says Thailand Bombed Poipet as Border Fighting Continues Despite Truce Claims
*Event date: 2025-12-18*
By IO Digest Desk
Cambodia said on December 18, 2025 that Thai forces had bombed Poipet, the busy casino and border crossing town opposite Thailand, in the latest sign that fighting between the two Southeast Asian neighbors was continuing despite outside claims of a ceasefire. The accusation, reported by Al Jazeera, directly contradicted assertions by US President Donald Trump that a new truce had been agreed and reinforced how unstable the border remained after months of renewed conflict.
Cambodia’s defense ministry said Thai forces dropped two bombs on Poipet at about 11 a.m. local time. The town, in Banteay Meanchey province, is one of the most economically important crossing points on the frontier and is heavily used by Thai gamblers visiting Cambodian casinos. At the time of the report, Thailand had not confirmed the alleged strike. Cambodia’s interior ministry said at least four casinos had been damaged by Thai attacks earlier in the week.
The humanitarian toll from the current round of fighting is already severe. Officials cited by Al Jazeera said the clashes had killed at least 21 people in Thailand and 17 in Cambodia, while displacing roughly 800,000. Thailand also said that between 5,000 and 6,000 Thai nationals remained stranded in Poipet after Cambodia closed land crossings as a safety measure. Phnom Penh described the closures as necessary to reduce risks to civilians, while noting that people could still leave by air.
This is not the first attempted pause in the conflict. A previous five-day burst of fighting in July ended with a truce brokered by the United States, China and Malaysia, but that arrangement later collapsed. Trump said again last week that a new ceasefire had been reached. Bangkok denied any such agreement, and Al Jazeera reported that artillery, tanks, drones and jets had continued to be used daily after a border skirmish earlier in December triggered the latest escalation.
The conflict has deep historical roots. Cambodia and Thailand have long disputed the demarcation of their 800-kilometer frontier, a problem tied to colonial-era boundaries and the location of several ancient temple sites along the border. Each government has accused the other of starting the latest round of fighting and each has claimed to be acting in self-defense, while also alleging attacks on civilians by the other side.
The gap between diplomatic claims and battlefield reality has become one of the conflict’s defining features. Public declarations of peace have repeatedly failed to hold, and neither government appears ready to concede ground on the underlying territorial dispute. The renewed allegation over Poipet matters partly because it involves a high-traffic civilian and commercial area, increasing the political pressure on both capitals and the risk of wider regional fallout.
China said it was sending its special envoy for Asian affairs to both Cambodia and Thailand on a shuttle-diplomacy mission aimed at bridging differences and rebuilding peace. That move suggests regional powers still believe diplomacy can contain the fighting. But as of December 18, the immediate reality on the ground was clear: the border war had not paused, the truce claims had not translated into calm, and one of the busiest crossings on the frontier had become part of the battlefield.
