Thai - Cambodia Conflict Cambodian BM-21 Rocket Strike Hits Petrol Station, Injures Dozens Including Students

[Georgealbert]

 

Pictures courtesy of ThaiRath.

 

A Cambodian artillery rocket reportedly struck a petrol station in Ban Phue, near Kantharalak district in Sisaket province, on the morning  of 24 July, igniting a fire and injuring numerous civilians, including students.

 

According to military sources from the Royal Thai Army’s Second Army Region, a BM-21 rocket fired from Cambodian territory landed directly on a convenience store located within the petrol station complex. The third in a series of at least three explosions, the impact triggered a blaze that quickly engulfed the premises.

 

Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos as residents and schoolchildren, who had entered the store moments before the attack, fled the flames. Emergency responders were seen rushing to evacuate the wounded and contain the fire.

 

 

Local authorities confirmed that a significant number of injuries occurred, though no exact casualty figures have been released. Medical personnel are currently treating victims at nearby hospitals.

 

 

Related article:

 

https://aseannow.com/topic/1367700-thai-and-cambodian-troops-clash-near-ta-muen-thom-temple/

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from ThaiRath 2025-07-24

 

 

 

 

[Georgealbert]

UPDATE
Cambodian BM-21 Rocket Strike Kills Three, Injures 14

 

Picture courtesy of Khoasod.

 

A devastating rocket attack on a petrol station in Sisaket province has left three people dead and at least 14 others injured, following a military escalation along the Thai-Cambodian border.

 

The incident occurred on the morning of 24 July during fierce clashes between Thai and Cambodian forces near the border area.Fighting reportedly erupted around 09:00, with sustained gunfire and artillery heard for over two hours.

 

One of the Cambodian-fired BM-21 Grad rockets struck a PTT petrol station in Ban Phue, Kantharalak District, igniting a massive fire. The adjacent convenience store was severely damaged, with thick smoke and flames seen billowing from the site.

 

Three people were killed at the scene. Due to the severity of the burns, authorities have not yet confirmed whether the victims were students, staff or civilians passing through. Emergency personnel continue to work to identify the deceased.

 

Fourteen other individuals sustained injuries ranging from moderate to severe. All have been transported to local hospitals, where medical teams are assessing their conditions.

 

The strike triggered panic in the surrounding areas, prompting an urgent evacuation of residents. Long traffic queues were reported as civilians attempted to flee the conflict zone.

 

Authorities are investigating the full extent of the damage, while efforts are underway to restore safety in the border area.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Khoasod 2025-07-24

 

 

 

 

 

[Georgealbert]

UPDATE
Student Among Victims as Death Toll Rises to 8 After Cambodian Rocket Strike on Petrol Station

 

Picture courtesy of Khoasod.

 

Authorities have now confirmed that at least eight civilians lost their lives in the attack. One of the deceased was a student who had reportedly stopped at the convenience store on the way home after being evacuated from school due to the ongoing conflict.

 

The identity of the other victims is still being verified, as some bodies were badly burned in the explosion and ensuing fire. At least 14 people sustained injuries of varying severity and have been transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Khoasod 2025-07-24

 

 

 

 

[brewsterbudgen]

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

[Peabody]

2 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/07/24/world/thailand-cambodia-border-clash

[Rimmer]

 

The BM-21 Grad is a Soviet truck-mounted 122 mm multiple rocket launcher. The weapons system and the M-21OF rocket that it fires evolved in the early 1960s and saw their first combat use in March 1969 during the Sino-Soviet border conflict.19 Dec 2024

 

Hardly a precision rocket launcher and should never be used against civilian targets for fear of hitting hospitals, 711 stores and Hospitals.

 

It would seem Cambodia has 463 of them and not much else in the way of modern weapons.

[brewsterbudgen]

55 minutes ago, Peabody said:

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/07/24/world/thailand-cambodia-border-clash

Thanks.  On Sky News (UK) now.

[Hamus Yaigh]

It's a classic authoritarian playbook: create an external crisis to deflect from internal failures. Trumps tariffs are going to hit Cambodian factory cheap labor hard and these unemployed labor might normally travel to Thailand to get work. Problem solved by bombing each other and closing the border.

[Peter Crow]

They are still shooting, no airborne F-16 around, no helos, so zero chance to take the launchers out. 

 

Saw the impact on a concrete road this morning, not much damage. 

[Rimmer]

11 minutes ago, Peter Crow said:

They are still shooting, no airborne F-16 around, no helos, so zero chance to take the launchers out. 

 

Saw the impact on a concrete road this morning, not much damage. 

 

 

[Peter Crow]

15 minutes ago, Rimmer said:

 

 

I am 10K from the border, we had two salvos of rockets one this morning, and one just a while ago. Aircraft fly over 30 to 45 minutes after. The launchers will have moved 20k by the time the Thai airforce can strike.

 

I saw that impact on the road after picking up my daughter from school, about 300 meters away, these <deleted> could have just as well hit the schoolyard with 200 kids milling about. These idiots are hardly human. Kmer Rouge culture I guess.

[Lorry]

1 hour ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

It's all over the news in Europe and Asia. 

Don't know about Trumpistan.

[Lorry]

35 minutes ago, Hamus Yaigh said:

It's a classic authoritarian playbook: create an external crisis to deflect from internal failures. Trumps tariffs are going to hit Cambodian factory cheap labor hard and these unemployed labor might normally travel to Thailand to get work. Problem solved by bombing each other and closing the border.

Similar reasoning seems to apply to Thailand.  So both governments aren't very keen on deescalation.

[Georgealbert]

UPDATE
Husband Devastated After Wife and Two Children Killed in Cambodian Rocket Strike

 

Pictures courtesy of Amarin

 

A man has been left emotionally shattered after his wife and two children were killed when a Cambodian BM-21 rocket struck a convenience store in a PTT petrol station in Sisaket province.

 

The tragedy unfolded as the family of four stopped at the station after picking up their children from school, which had closed early due to escalating border hostilities. The mother and her children, a 15-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son, entered the store to buy snacks, while the father briefly went to use the restroom. Moments later, a rocket fired from Cambodian territory hit the premises, killing all three inside.

 

The victims’ family home is in Ban Deang Noi, Kantharalak District, some 30 kilometres from the Cambodian border. Speaking to the press, Mr Surasak Chaipakdee, a relative of the deceased, said the village had never previously been affected by conflict-related shelling and residents had assumed it was out of range.

 

“I was talking with relatives about how the fighting couldn’t possibly reach here,” he said. “Not five minutes later, we heard the explosion and saw smoke rising from the PTT station. We had no idea our loved ones were there until we received the heartbreaking news.”

 

According to Mr Surasak, the father, identified as Mr Pao and his wife, Mrs Rung, had driven to collect their children after schools were closed for safety reasons. The stop at the petrol station was part of their usual routine. Their daughter was reportedly thrown from the building by the force of the blast and died outside, while Mrs Rung and her young son perished inside the shop.

 

The grieving father has since been taken to stay with relatives in Nong Sanom, Det Udom District, Ubon Ratchathani province, due to his mental state.

 

Mr Surasak added that the village has now been partially evacuated, with children and the elderly moved to safer areas. “Only the men remain to guard the homes and property,” he said. “But we’re all afraid. No one expected a rocket would hit a petrol station filled with civilians.”

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Amarin 2025-07-25

 

 

 

[Georgealbert]

UPDATE
Unexploded Ordnance Cleared and Bodies Recovered Following Cambodian Rocket Strike

 

Pictures courtesy of Amarin.

 

Authorities have now successfully recovered the bodies of victims killed in a Cambodian rocket strike at a petrol station convenience store in Kantharalak district, Sisaket province, after unexploded ordnance at the scene was safely neutralised.

 

The attack, which took place on 24 July, saw multiple BM-21 rockets launched by Cambodian forces into Thai territory amid intensifying border hostilities. One rocket struck a PTT petrol station in Ban Phue, causing devastating damage and the deaths of at least eight people, with 13 others wounded.

 

Efforts to retrieve the victims’ bodies were initially hampered due to the presence of live munitions lodged inside the wreckage of the store. Fears of further explosions led to the area being cordoned off until explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams could secure the site.

 

At approximately 06:30 on the morning of 25 July, bomb disposal units from Thailand’s Second Army Region, working alongside Border Patrol Police Region 2, entered the area with the primary goal of removing any remaining unexploded devices and ensuring the site was safe for rescue teams.

 

Later, the army’s official communications confirmed that all explosive materials had been cleared. Rescue foundation personnel were then able to carry out the sombre task of retrieving the victims’ remains from the destroyed building.

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Amarin 2025-07-25

 

 

 

[SantiSuk]

Previous conflicts in this region of Isaan have been limited to guerilla like activity from Cambodians very close to the border and not far from the (disputed ownership of) the temple at Khao Phra Wihan. This time around the Cambodians have gone for a wider range of targets like this pam namman/gas station on the outskirts of the town of Benchalak some 30 km north of the border and other targets in the provinces of Sisaket and Surin.

The impact on the resident population has been palpable. Schools in my area of Sisaket's amphur town of Kantharalak sent kids home early yesterday morning and are closed today. The mood in the villages and towns around me has been ultra-scared with many families considering moving well away until the conflict approaches resolution.

We need a signal urgently from Thai government whether they are looking to negotiate or apply equally ominous attacking measures on the Cambodian communities. Now is not the time for prevarication.

 

[BerndD]

21 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

Germany yesterday: https://www.spiegel.de/ausland/suedostasien-schusswechsel-an-grenze-zwischen-thailand-und-kambodscha-a-d06eb4ff-cf75-4ada-b5c4-43eb6481c929

 

and several more of the most important german magazines and newspapers.

[billd766]

21 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

It was on the BBC World News website this morning.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg5gz03d8no

[billd766]

21 hours ago, Rimmer said:

 

The BM-21 Grad is a Soviet truck-mounted 122 mm multiple rocket launcher. The weapons system and the M-21OF rocket that it fires evolved in the early 1960s and saw their first combat use in March 1969 during the Sino-Soviet border conflict.19 Dec 2024

 

Hardly a precision rocket launcher and should never be used against civilian targets for fear of hitting hospitals, 711 stores and Hospitals.

 

It would seem Cambodia has 463 of them and not much else in the way of modern weapons.

The BM 21 was made ib Russia.

 

The anti-personnel landmine that blew off a Thai soldiers foot, was also made in Russia. I wonder if there is a connection between the two? Not a conspiracy theory, but more of an idle thought.

[Will B Good]

5 minutes ago, billd766 said:

The BM 21 was made ib Russia.

 

The anti-personnel landmine that blew off a Thai soldiers foot, was also made in Russia. I wonder if there is a connection between the two? Not a conspiracy theory, but more of an idle thought.

 

 

Both made in Russia?

 

[Halfaboy]

10 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

 

 

Both made in Russia?

 

 

And sold  / bought at the Russian Market in Phnom Pen....

[JensenZ]

22 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Shocking.  Presumably this is being covered in full on Thai media?   I haven't seen anything internationally yet.

you should try looking - it's all over the international news

[ozz1]

So sad for innocent people shopping at 7-Eleven and get killed just saw the unedited version it's horrific Cambodia has to pay for this