“Thailand has released 18 Cambodian prisoners of war, three days after the two countries agreed to a renewed ceasefire to end weeks of deadly border clashes,” reports Al Jazeera.
The Cambodian soldiers reached their home country at 10am on Wednesday after 155 days of captivity. Al Jazeera reports that “the handover was coordinated by the International Committee of the Red Cross, which praised both sides for reaching a truce.”
Chhengpor Aun, of the Cambodian think-tank Future Forum, says the release was long overdue, and that Thailand used the detained soldiers as a “bargaining chip.” He said that violated international law. Moreover, “the release did very little to heal severely bruised relations with Thailand,” he said. Cambodians are mad about the war and the presence of Thai troops in western Cambodia.
Al Jazeera notes that
The border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia reignited early this month, following a breakdown in the ceasefire deal that United States President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim helped to broker to halt a previous round of conflict in July.
The clashes, which lasted 20 days in December, killed at least 101 people and displaced more than half a million on both sides. The fighting included fighter jet sorties, exchanges of rocket fire and artillery barrages.
Thailand and Cambodia agreed to a renewed ceasefire over the weekend, and it took effect at noon on Saturday.
The soldiers were due to be returned on Tuesday, but Thailand delayed the handover over alleged breaches of the ceasefire deal, which Cambodia denied.
