Latest news with #PublicHealthMinistry
Bangkok Post
3 hours ago
- Health
- Bangkok Post
Schools wary after 5 kids left dead
Public Health Ministry Spokesman Dr Varoth Chotpitayasunondh reported that the border clashes have led to 15 civilian deaths and injured 53 others. Among the dead, five were reported to be local students. The ministry also reported that 20 hospitals have been affected, 13 of them have closed, while 7 of them are partially closed. Another 175 subdistrict-level medical centres have also been impacted. Dr Varoth also reported that as of now, 548 of 1,221 public health response teams were in operation. Those included the Medical Emergency Response Teams (MERT), the Mini MERTs, and other related teams, he added. In mental health services, 21,007 people have received mental health screening with the Mental Health Crisis Response Teams (MCATT). Of those, 293 were diagnosed with having high stress, while 41 reported being at risk of suicide, said Dr Varoth. Meanwhile, the Royal Thai Army (RTA) reported that three soldiers were killed during attacks on Monday. They were named as SM1 Theerayuth Sijuijai of the 3rd Infantry Regiment, SM Apirom Songput of the 8th Infantry Regiment, and Private Theerayuth Krajangthong of the 2nd Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion. As of Tuesday, the number of casualties among military personnel stood at 14 since the fighting broke out on July 24. The troops remain cautious after the ceasefire was imposed. The use of weaponry has also subsided in areas under the control of the 2nd Army Region, according to the RTA. Meanwhile, effects on schools and students have been reported. Acting Sub Lt Thanu Wongjinda, secretary-general of the Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec), said that the Obec was now drafting a learning plan for students in the disputed areas, as per concerns by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. The plan will be based on the learning method used during the Covid-19 pandemic. Obec is set to apply five "on" methods for students on the border. According to Acting Sub Lt Thanu, the schools in a safer location can operate classrooms "on-site" if the situation returns to normal. The school can opt for an "on-air" classroom through the DLTV system, an "online" class, or an "on-demand" class through a mobile application.
Bangkok Post
3 days ago
- Health
- Bangkok Post
Cambodian attacks affect 19 Thai hospitals
Cambodian attacks on Thai soil have affected 19 Thai hospitals, with health authorities preparing to evacuate more inpatients amid threats from Cambodia's long-range weapons, according to the Public Health Ministry. Dr Weerawut Imsamran, deputy permanent secretary for public health, said on Sunday that Cambodian attacks in Thai border areas had had an impact on 19 Thai hospitals. Of them, 11 facilities were closed and eight were maintaining only emergency services. According to him, four hospitals were damaged: Phanom Dongrak Hospital in Surin province and three subdistrict-level hospitals in Si Sa Ket province. The Thai civilian death toll from Cambodian attacks had reached 13 while the injured numbered 36, including 11 seriously wounded. Health professionals evacuated 617 inpatients and were taking care of 138,152 evacuees at 433 shelters. They sent 139 ill evacuees to hospitals. 'The management of hospitals in risky areas have been instructed to plan the evacuation of their patients to hospitals in nearby, safe provinces in case longer-range weapons are used,' Dr Weerawut said.
ABC News
5 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Fighting continues on Thailand-Cambodia border as world leaders call for peace
Thai and Cambodian soldiers are continuing to clash along the border between their countries in a major escalation that has so far left at least 14 people dead, mostly Thai civilians. The two sides fired small arms, artillery and rockets, and Thailand also launched air strikes in the bloodiest military battles in more than a decade between the two South-East Asian neighbours. The conflict presents "a big headache" for South-East Asia, a leading expert says, with questions remaining over how the two countries and the region will respond. Fighting took place in at least six areas on Thursday, according to Thai Defence Ministry spokesperson Surasant Kongsiri, a day after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers. The incident led Bangkok to withdraw its ambassador from Cambodia and expel Cambodia's envoy to Thailand. Cambodia fired rockets and artillery shells into Thailand and the Thai military scrambled F-16 jets to carry out air strikes. In Bangkok, the Public Health Ministry said a Thai soldier and 13 civilians, including children, were killed while 14 soldiers and 32 other civilians were injured. Most of the causalities were caused by a rocket strike near a petrol station in Sisaket province. Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin condemned what he said were the attacks on civilians and a hospital as violations of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions. "We urge the Cambodian government to immediately halt these war criminal actions, and return to respecting the principles of peaceful coexistence," he said. On Friday, Cambodia's chief official in Oddar Meanchey province, General Khov Ly, said clashes resumed early in the morning near the ancient Ta Muen Thom temple. Associated Press reporters near the border could hear sounds of artillery from early morning hours. The official also said that at least four civilians were wounded in Thursday's fighting there and that more than 4,000 people had been displaced from their villages along the border to evacuation centres. It was the first account of any casualties from the Cambodian side. The escalation represents a rare instance of military conflict between member countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), though Thailand has tangled with Cambodia before over the border and has had sporadic skirmishes with western neighbour Myanmar. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged both sides "to exercise maximum restraint and address any issues through dialogue", according to UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq. Thailand and Cambodia have blamed each other for the clashes, alleging that civilians were being targeted. The fighting is the latest chapter in a long-running spat over an area known as the Emerald Triangle, where the borders of both countries and Laos meet. The decades-old squabble flared into bloody clashes more than 15 years ago and again in May, when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a firefight. Praphas Intaracheun, a 53-year-old gardener from Sisaket, told AFP that he was refuelling at another petrol station about 300 metres from the one that was hit on Thursday. A 30-bed hospital in the town of Phanom Dong Rak in Surin province, just 15 kilometres from the border, was hit by shells which shattered windows and collapsed part of a roof. The facility was partially evacuated on Wednesday night as a precaution. Fighting was focused on six locations, the Thai army said, with ground troops and tanks battling Cambodian forces for control of territory. Six Thai air force jets were deployed, hitting two "Cambodian military targets on the ground", according to Thai military deputy spokesperson Ritcha Suksuwanon. AFP journalists met Cambodians fleeing their villages near the Thai border to escape the fighting. "We dare not to stay. They were fighting so bad that my house was shaking," Say Vuthy said. "We already dug a bunker but we dared not stay because we were scared that they will keep fighting at night." In Cambodia, several hundred villagers moved from their homes near the border to about 30 kilometres deeper inside Oddar Meanchey province. Many made the journey with entire families and most of their possessions on home-made tractors, before settling down with hammocks and makeshift shelters. From the encampment near the town of Samrong, a 45-year-old mother of four, Tep Savouen, said it all started about 8am. "Suddenly I heard a loud noise," she told the AP. "My son told me it might be thunder and I thought 'Is it thunder or is it loud, more like a gun?′ At that time I was very scared." Director of the Asia-Pacific program at policy think tank Chatham House, Ben Bland, said that domestic politics and public opinion were key driving factors in the conflict. "We know that a lot of temples that are on the border are really important, symbolically and culturally, for people in Cambodia," Mr Bland said. "We know Cambodia has been invaded in the past. It's gone through decades of conflict. Thailand is also a proud country and has a very messy domestic politics right now. So, I think to a certain extent, this has been driven by politics and sustained by … some nationalist opinion in both countries." Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura said the government was "prepared to intensify our self-defence measures if Cambodia persists in its armed aggression and violations upon Thailand's sovereignty". In the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, Defence Ministry spokesperson Lieutenant General Maly Socheata said his country deployed armed force because "it has no choice but to defend its territory against Thai threats". The spokesperson insisted the Cambodian "attacks are focused on the military places, not on any other place". Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet wrote to the UN Security Council asking for an urgent meeting "to stop Thailand's aggression". The council scheduled an emergency closed meeting at 3pm in New York on Friday. Mr Bland said the violence was "really concerning" but both countries had shown the ability to de-escalate tensions in the past. "There's more of a risk that it becomes a protracted diplomatic and economic battle between the two, and I think that would potentially have knock-on effects economically," Mr Bland said. "It just creates another point of tension for South-East Asian nations when they're already facing the impacts of the civil war in Myanmar, US-China tensions and Trump's tariffs. "It's another big headache for the region, but it's still early days." Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim posted on X that he had spoken to both Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thailand's acting prime minister Phumtham Wechayachai. Malaysia is the current chair of ASEAN. "I appealed directly to both leaders for an immediate ceasefire to prevent further hostilities and to create space for peaceful dialogue and diplomatic resolution," Mr Anwar posted. "I welcome the positive signals and willingness shown by both Bangkok and Phnom Penh to consider this path forward." The United States, European Union, France and China, a close ally of Phnom Penh, all called for peace. "We are deeply concerned over the current developments [and] hope both sides can properly resolve issues through dialogue and consultations," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said. Mr Bland said China ought to play a part in bringing about peace. "It has extensive economic links with both countries … it clearly has huge interests in one neighbour and one close partner not being at loggerheads with each other," he said. "China's approach to conflict is often mitigation rather than mediation or resolution. So I think they'll be standing on the sidelines for now. But really if China does aspire to a bigger role in regional global security, which they often talk about rhetorically, this is the sort of case where you might expect or even hope that they would play some sort of bigger role, but we will have to see for now." The Australian government has urged travellers to reconsider the need to travel to border areas in both Cambodia and Thailand because of the conflict. ABC/wires
Bangkok Post
5 days ago
- Health
- Bangkok Post
Strikes on civilians a 'war crime'
The Ministry of Public Health yesterday strongly condemned Cambodia following deadly rocket attacks yesterday that killed civilians, among them two schoolchildren, and struck areas in border provinces, including a hospital in Surin's Phanom Dongrak district. Describing the attacks as inhumane, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin said he was angered and saddened by the assaults on the hospital and other civilian targets in Surin and other provinces. These attacks, which killed at least 11 people and injured several others, not only violated Thai sovereignty but also trampled on human values, he said. Mr Somsak said the attack on the hospital was a gross violation of human rights and of the Fourth Geneva Convention (1949), which protects civilian hospitals during armed conflict. The loss of innocent lives, including children, is unacceptable and cannot be forgiven, he said. "The Public Health Ministry condemns in the strongest terms the attack on the hospital and on Thai citizens," he said. "Hospitals must always be safe areas. A deliberate attack is crossing the line. Article 18 of the Fourth Geneva Convention says that civilian hospitals may in no circumstances be the object of attack and parties to the conflict are obligated to respect and protect [them]." Mr Somsak said Cambodia's aggression is a serious violation of international law and a war crime, noting that those issuing an order to attack and those who carry it out must be held accountable. The ministry demands that the Cambodian government cease any further attacks and take full responsibility, he said. In a media interview, Mr Somsak said patients at Phanom Dong Rak Hospital and Kap Choeng Hospital, which are located in high-risk areas, have been evacuated or sent home with Surin's public health office raising the emergency to Level 2. Somkhuan Singkham, chief of Kantharalak district in Surin, said seven people, including two schoolchildren, were killed in the attack on a 7-11 convenience store inside a petrol station in Ban Phue. The petrol station is reportedly located 20 kilometres from the border. In Kap Choeng district, about 40,000 people in 86 villages were also evacuated to emergency shelters in schools in the neighbouring district of Prasart, said district chief Sutthiroj Charoenthanasak. He said shelter capacity was adequate, and most evacuees had arrived safely. Two rockets struck a village at 9.40am while residents were awaiting evacuation, he added. Attacking hospitals is potentially a war crime, he noted.
CNA
5 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
Thailand deploys F-16 fighter jets as clashes erupt along disputed border with Cambodia
An age-old border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia has intensified into deadly clashes. Thailand's Public Health Ministry confirmed that 11 civilians have been killed in the latest bout of fighting. The clashes erupted near a disputed temple along the border this morning, with both countries blaming each other for firing the first shot. The Thai Army deployed F-16 fighter jets, striking what it said were two military targets, while Cambodia reportedly used multiple weapons, including a rocket launcher. Saksith Saiyasombut reports from Bangkok.
