Thailand-Cambodian Border: Tense But Calm over Temple Dispute

Thai and Cambodian troops were both on high alert along their mutual border on Tuesday but the day started with a tense calm.

Four days of fighting between the two armies over land surrounding a 900-year-old temple have claimed the lives of at least two Thais and eight Cambodians.

Villagers living near the scene of the conflict have been moving into temporary shelters a safer distance away.

[Aranya Nangwong, Villager]:
"The soldiers told us that it's still not safe because the situation is tense."

Despite four days of bitter fighting Cambodia on Tuesday returned a Thai soldier captured during the clashes.

Private Songkram Tongchompoo was handed back by Cambodian officials at a ceremony in Phnom Penh.

[Nim Sowath, Cambodian Army General]:
"This shows our goodwill, that we are handing back a captured prisoner of war, a Thai soldier who we caught during the fighting on our land."

The handover took place with both nations under increasing diplomatic pressure to lay down their arms.

The generations-old feud centers on 4.6 square kilometers of land around the ancient temple they each claim as their territory.