Cambodian senate president says border areas of 2 Cambodian provinces shelled by Thai army

PHNOM PENH -- Cambodian Senate President Samdech Techo Hun Sen said on Thursday that the Thai army shelled the border areas of Oddar Meanchey province and Preah Vihear province in Cambodia.

In a post on his official social media platforms, Hun Sen said Thai soldiers began to attack the Cambodian troops, and the Cambodian soldiers had no choice but to fight back and counterattack.

He urged people not to panic, nor to stockpile rice or other goods, and called on vendors not to increase the prices of goods.

"Thai military had launched first an armed assault on Cambodian forces, and Cambodian forces acted strictly within the bounds of self-defense, responding to an unprovoked incursion by Thai troops that violated our territorial integrity," Lieutenant General Maly Socheata, undersecretary of state and spokesperson for Cambodia's Ministry of National Defense, said in a statement.

A clash happened at the border areas between Thailand and Cambodia after the Cambodian side first opened fire, injuring a Thai soldier, the Thai Army said on Thursday.