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Controversy over temple land hots up

— Photo: AFP

Sovereignty issue: Cambodian soldiers at Preah Vihear temple near Thai border in Preah Vihear province.

PREAH VIHEAR (Cambodia): Cambodian officials said more Thai troops crossed into their country’s territory on Wednesday in the second day of alleged incursions amid tensions over disputed border land near a historic temple.

Thai officials have denied any incursion, saying the troops are deploying on what was clearly Thai territory to protect its sovereignty. However, a senior Thai military source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said about 200 Thai troops were inside what he called “disputed border territory.”

The director of Cambodian agency in charge of the Preah Vihear temple, Hang Soth, said the Thais continued to cross the border on Wednesday.

The confrontation came after UNESCO declared Preah Vihear, which is at the centre of a long-standing border quarrel between the neighbours, a World Heritage site last week. Both countries claim 4.6 square km of land around the temple, and Thai anti-government activists have recently revived nationalist sentiment. The activists and some government officials fear the temple’s new status will jeopardise their country’s claims to land adjacent to the site.

In 1962, the International Court of Justice awarded Preah Vihear and the land it occupies to Cambodia, a decision that still rankles many Thais even though the temple is culturally Cambodian, sharing the Hindu-influenced style of the more famous Angkor complex in Cambodia. — AP

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