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Thai, Cambodian troops clash near disputed temple

PHNOM PENH: Thai and Cambodian soldiers exchanged rocket and small arms fire on a disputed stretch of their border on Friday, the latest flare-up in a long-running feud over a 900-year-old Hindu temple.Both sides accused each other of firing first in a clash lasting nearly an hour at Eagle Field, near the Preah Vihear temple, which was at the centre of a military stand-off between the Southeast Asian neighbours last year.There were no reports of wounded or dead. Thai and Cambodian military commanders on the border agreed to meet at midday to avoid further violence. General Srey Doek, Cambodia's commander at the temple, said a Thai patrol crossed into Cambodian territory and opened fire on his men. "The Thais fired rockets and rifles at us, and we responded in the same way," he told. Both sides agreed a ceasefire after their border commanders spoke by radio. In Bangkok, Thai officials denied their troops had trod on Cambodian soil and accused the other side of shooting first. "This was just a misunderstanding," Thai army chief Anupong Paochinda said.

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