Thousands of families on both sides of the disputed Thailand-Cambodia border have fled as a bitter new conflict erupts between the two Southeast Asian neighbors, though many others have had no choice but to remain in the crossfire.
In Thailand’s Buriram province, village head and security guard Wuttikrai Chimngarm crouched behind a makeshift bunker built from six layers of tires, bracing as relentless shelling rattled the borderlands.
"I have to stay behind. I’m the head of the village – if not me, then who? Who will safeguard the villagers’ houses and belongings from looters? I’m the leader, and all the village security guards have to stick together,” he said.
Hundreds of thousands of people have moved into temporary shelters since fighting resumed Monday, breaking a fragile truce brokered by President Donald Trump in July.
Wuttikrai said he was concerned the shelters could also be targeted.
"I am worried, and the villagers who evacuated are also worried because they (the Cambodians) possess heavy weapons with a firing range of up to 130 kilometers, according to the news,” he said.
In the Thai border district of Ta Phraya, civilians expressed anger at this week’s renewed hostilities, with 65-year-old villager Sopee Kunkem calling for Cambodia’s military capabilities to be "blown to oblivion.”
"They said they would have a cease-fire,” he said. "They signed the agreement, but they didn’t stop firing.”
Both sides accuse the other of reigniting the conflict and of targeting civilian areas.
In Kaun Kriel, a disputed village about 25 kilometers (15 miles) northwest of the Cambodian city of Samraong, wary residents remembering the five-day July border clash – which killed at least 48 people – began to flee as soon as fighting erupted again Monday.
"This is my second run because the place I live is very close to the border and was under attack both times,” said Cambodian farmer Marng Sarun, a 31-year-old harvester who left the village with his wife and two children.
Marng said he and his family were among the last to flee Kaun Kriel, which is near the 11th century Ta Krabey temple. He said he barely had time to grab a sack of rice and a few cooking supplies and is now trying to feed his family with fish caught in a pond near the refugee site.
He said he never expected Thailand to "attack” Cambodia again or that he would have to leave Kaun Kriel for a second time.
"I only thought that we might have tensions, but it would not reach this far. Especially after President Trump helped secure the peace agreement, I didn’t think they would fight again,” he said.