Bangkok, Thailand (CNN) -- Fighting erupted for a third consecutive day in a disputed area along the Thai-Cambodian border Sunday, a Thai military official said.
One member of Thailand's military sustained minor injuries in the skirmish, which lasted for about three hours and involved small arms and artillery, Col. Sansern Kaewkumnerd said.
In his weekly address, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva called for bilateral meetings to end the dispute, the MCOT news agency reported.
"Thailand will not fall into Cambodia's trap in which the neighbor tries to intensify the conflict so violently that the dispute can no longer be solved at a bilateral level," Abhisit said, according to MCOT.
Authorities have evacuated thousands of people from nearby villages.
Each side blames the other for the violence, which first broke out Friday near two temples in the Phanom Dong Rak district of Thailand's Surin province.
Thailand's public health ministry said four Thai soldiers were killed in the clashes on Friday and Saturday. Cambodia's government said three of its troops were killed.
Sansern accused Cambodian troops of opening fire first Sunday and said Thai troops responded to protect their country's sovereignty.
Cambodian officials could not be immediately reached for comment. A statement from the country's defense ministry Saturday described the clashes as an "assault by Thai infantry units," accusing Thailand of flying spy planes into Cambodia and attacking with heavy weapons.
Thailand's foreign ministry issued statements Saturday accusing Cambodia of "firing heavy weapons at innocent Thai civilians."
The office of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement Saturday that Ban was "troubled" by the recent clashes, especially after "initial signs of progress" toward resolving their conflict peacefully.
"The Secretary-General calls on both sides to exercise maximum restraint and to take immediate measures to put in place for an effective and verifiable ceasefire," the statement said.
At least 10 people were killed when renewed fighting flared up in another disputed border area between the two nations in February, prompting the U.N. Security Council to issue a statement calling on both sides to implement a cease-fire.
Those clashes, which lasted four days, stemmed from a longstanding conflict related to the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple. Both Cambodia and Thailand lay claim to the temple, which sits atop a cliff on Cambodian soil but has its most accessible entrance on the Thai side.
At the time, each nation accused the other of firing first.
CNN's Kocha Olarn contributed to this report.
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
|