Thailand declares martial law in eight districts bordering Cambodia

Thailand declared martial law in eight of its districts bordering Cambodia on Friday, as the countries traded strikes in a second deadly day of clashes.

Apichart Sapprasert, commander of the military's Border Defence Command in the provinces of Chanthaburi and Trat, said this in a statement, "martial law is now in effect" in seven districts of Chanthaburi and one district of Trat.

A steady thump of artillery strikes could be heard from the Cambodian side of the border Friday, where the province of Oddar Meanchey reported one civilian -- a 70-year-old man -- had been killed and five more wounded.

Witnesses said Cambodian forces firing heavy weapons, field artillery, and BM-21 rocket systems, and Thai troops responding "with appropriate supporting fire.

Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai warned Friday that cross-border clashes with Cambodia that have uprooted more than 130,000 people "could develop into war", as the countries traded deadly strikes for a second day.

"We have tried to compromise as we are neighbours, but we have now instructed the Thai military to act immediately in case of urgency," said Phumtham.

"If the situation escalates, it could develop into war -- though for now, it remains limited to clashes," he told reporters in Bangkok.

A long-running border dispute erupted into intense fighting with jets, artillery, tanks and ground troops on Thursday, and the UN Security Council is set to hold an emergency meeting on the crisis later Friday.

'Deeply distressing'

By the afternoon, foreign ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura told AFP there were signs the fighting was easing off, and said Thailand was open to talks, possibly aided by Malaysia.

"We are ready, if Cambodia would like to settle this matter via diplomatic channels, bilaterally, or even through Malaysia, we are ready to do that. But so far we have not had any response," Nikorndej told AFP.

Malaysia currently holds the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional bloc, of which Thailand and Cambodia are both members.

However Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet claimed Thailand had already backed out of one proposed truce, saying in a statement he was awaiting Bangkok's "genuine willingness" to de-escalate.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said casualties were "deeply distressing" and called for the crisis to be "approached calmly and handled properly".

Cambodia has stayed tight-lipped about its casualty numbers, but AFP journalists saw four wounded soldiers and three civilians receiving treatment at a hospital in Oddar Meanchey.

The soldiers said they were injured during the fighting on Thursday, while the civilians said they were hit by shrapnel.

In the Cambodian town of Samraong, 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the border, AFP journalists saw families speeding away in vehicles with their children and belongings as gunfire erupted.