AKP Phnom Penh, December 20, 2025 —

Behind every military communiqué and diplomatic statement lies a human tragedy that cannot be ignored. As Thailand continues its military aggression against Cambodia, it is Cambodian civilians who bear the heaviest burden—families whose homes have been destroyed, children whose education has been interrupted, and communities forced into displacement by violence they did not choose.

This is not merely a border dispute or a political disagreement. It is a grave injustice unfolding in real time, marked by repeated violations of Cambodia’s sovereignty and the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law. When military force crosses an international border and civilian areas are struck, the issue ceases to be strategic and becomes profoundly moral.

Reports from affected provinces show widespread damage to civilian infrastructure. Homes, schools, and public buildings—objects that international law explicitly protects—have been destroyed or rendered unusable. Schools, which should serve as sanctuaries for learning and stability, have instead become symbols of loss. For thousands of children, education has been replaced by fear and uncertainty.

The human cost is devastating. Civilians have been killed, many more injured, and large numbers displaced. Families have fled with little more than what they can carry, seeking safety while facing the trauma of sudden loss. For elderly people, persons with disabilities, women, and children, displacement compounds vulnerability, stripping away dignity and basic security.

Under the Geneva Conventions, all parties to a conflict are obligated to distinguish at all times between combatants and civilians, and between military objectives and civilian objects. Attacks that fail to make this distinction are unlawful. No political justification, no security narrative, and no shifting of blame can excuse harm to civilians or the destruction of civilian infrastructure.

Thailand’s actions also undermine the international system built to prevent precisely this kind of suffering. The United Nations Charter prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity and political independence of another state. When such principles are violated without consequence, they lose meaning—not only for Cambodia, but for all nations that rely on international law for protection.

What makes this tragedy even more painful is the silence that often surrounds it. The suffering of Cambodian civilians has not received the level of international attention or outrage it deserves. Yet civilian lives are not worth less because they are Cambodian. Justice cannot be selective, and empathy cannot be conditional.

Cambodia has consistently called for respect for sovereignty, for the protection of civilians, and for peaceful resolution in accordance with international law. These are not unreasonable demands; they are the minimum standards of responsible state behavior. The continuation of military aggression only deepens human suffering and erodes regional stability.

The international community must act—not with vague statements, but with clarity and principle. This means demanding an immediate halt to attacks on civilian areas, ensuring humanitarian access for displaced populations, and holding violators of international law accountable. Silence or neutrality in the face of civilian suffering only emboldens further abuses.

The tragedy of Cambodian civilians is not inevitable. It is the result of choices—choices to use force instead of restraint, bombs instead of dialogue. Ending this suffering requires the world to choose differently: to stand for law over power, humanity over aggression, and justice over indifference.

Cambodian civilians deserve safety, dignity, and peace. The world must not look away.

By Roth Santepheap, a geopolitical analyst based in Phnom Penh.

(The views expressed are his own.)