PETALING JAYA: The Asean observer team has withdrawn to a safe zone as clashes intensify between Thai and Cambodian forces along the disputed border.
Armed forces chief Nizam Jaffar said Malaysia would adopt a “wait-and-see” approach before deciding on further action, Berita Harian reported.
“Both sides continue to fight, and there are too many details to summarise. The situation remains unstable,” he was quoted as saying.
The observer team, led by Malaysia, was deployed to monitor a ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia as part of the Kuala Lumpur Accord signed in October.
More than 500,000 people have fled their homes to safety in Thailand and Cambodia since the start of a reignited border conflict, both governments said on Wednesday, surpassing the total number evacuated during similar clashes earlier this year.
This week’s clashes are the deadliest since five days of fighting in July that killed dozens and displaced around 300,000 on both sides of the border before a ceasefire deal was brokered by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and US president Donald Trump.
Thailand and Cambodia have disputed parts of their 817km land border for over a century, with fights over ancient temples sparking occasional armed clashes, including a deadly week-long artillery exchange in 2011.
Tensions flared again in May after a Cambodian soldier was killed in a skirmish, triggering a major build-up of troops and renewed fighting, along with diplomatic strains.
