Celebrations are held but the mood is sober to show solidarity with the soldiers at the front while help is offered to the displaced with calls for a ceasefire. Fr Franco Legnani, a PIME missionary in Battambang Prefecture, speaks about Christmas among Cambodian Christians while war with Thailand continues. “Its effects affect everyone. The elderly say: we are back to the times of the Khmer Rouge. May the Lord grant us his peace.”
China’s special envoy Deng Xijun visits Phnom Penh to revive ceasefire efforts. Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy attacks Hun Sen and the Cambodian government for fanning the flames of conflict to mask a "personal conflict" with Thaksin Shinawatra. More than 30 Thai and Cambodian NGOs issue an appeal for a truce, stressing that mostly ordinary people are affected by war.
A conference organised with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime saw the launch of a global partnership against scam centres. Meta and TikTok have joined the initiative. Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is working to mediate between Thailand and Cambodia.
Tensions show no signs of abating 10 days after fighting resumed over the disputed border. For Cambodia, displaced people are the most serious emergency since the Khmer Rouge era. While Thailand calls on Cambodia to act "sincerely" to mine clearance, the latter accuses Thailand’s air force of dropping cluster bombs. Thailand's Tourism Ministry reports no cancellations by travellers going to Phuket.
In Cambodia, three bishops issued a joint appeal as air strikes and artillery fire continue for the sixth consecutive day along the 800-kilometre Thai-Cambodian border. “We pray for all the victims” and “affirm the closeness of our hearts to all displaced families, and especially children, the sick, and vulnerable people,” reads their statement. Meanwhile, in Thailand, the Catholic Bishops' Conference is mobilising to help the communities affected by the fighting.
The border dispute is not the only factor in restarting clashes. Scores of online scam centres operate along the border, run by criminal networks linked to Cambodian elites. Thailand considers them strategic military targets and is using the war to build up nationalist support ahead of upcoming elections. Thailand's opposition People's Party has called for a return to diplomacy.
