11th-Century temple left heavily damaged after Cambodia-Thailand border fighting

Описание: (24 Mar 2026)
RESTRICTIONS SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Preah Vihear Temple, Cambodia - 14 March 2026
1. Various of damage at Preah Vihear Temple, which is disputed between Thailand and Cambodia and was damaged during fighting
2. Mid of Cambodian official talking next to artillery shell
3. Close of unexploded artillery shell
4. Various of people at Preah Vihear Temple
5. SOUNDBITE (Khmer) Hem Sinath, archeologist and deputy director-general of the National Authority for Preah Vihear:
“This damage after we assessed, we see that about 80% of our temple was damaged. Before the fighting broke out, we had compiled a data and documents to make renovations to return it into good condition, but during the fighting it was damaged.”
6. Close of map of temple
7. Mid of Cambodian official talking to media
8. Various of damage
9. Mid of person looking through hole in wall
10. SOUNDBITE (Khmer) Hem Sinath, archeologist and deputy director-general of the National Authority for Preah Vihear:
“And now it made it really difficult for us to repair because some part or some structures of the temple are about to collapse, and the experts, who specialize in the restoration have predicted that during the upcoming rainy season, some part could be collapsed.”
11. Various of damage
12. Various of official showing damage on wall
STORYLINE:
It's been three months since a ceasefire ended bitter border fighting between Cambodia and Thailand, but the damage leaves deep scars in an 11th-century temple atop a 525-meter (1,722-foot) cliff in the Dangrek Mountain range.

The neighboring Southeast Asian countries have been fighting over Preah Vihear temple on and off for decades, and that's putting the ancient holy site in danger.

Built by the same Khmer Empire that constructed Angkor Wat 160 kilometers (100 miles) southwest, the temple was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2008 and is held as an important cultural relic by Cambodians.

But after two rounds of major combat last year, much of the structure is damaged and Cambodian officials say that parts of it may be in danger of collapse.

Where tourists once admired the weather-beaten structure's elaborate carvings and a magnificent view over the Cambodian plains, there is now stone debris, artillery craters and ashes.

The site is closed to tourism due to unstable walls and concern about the presence of unexploded ordnance.

Areas are roped off and dotted with warning signs of land mines, a hazard Cambodians know well after decades of civil war that ended in the late 1990.

Conservation staff, groundskeepers and troops remain stationed in and around the temple, where Thai soldiers can be seen just across the border.

All five of the temple’s notable gateway pavilions were damaged, three almost beyond recognition, according to a damage assessment issued in January by Cambodia’s Culture Ministry.

An ancient northern staircase that was restored by a U.S.-funded conservation project took severe hits from repeated bombardment.

A statement issued last week by Cambodia’s Culture Ministry said the temple had suffered damage in 142 locations during the fighting in July, and at 420 more during heavier and more sustained combat in December.

“Experts have predicted that during the upcoming rainy season, some structures on the verge of collapsing could finally fall,” Archeologist and Deputy Director-general of the National Authority for Preah Vihear, Hem Sinath said.

No independent outside evaluations of the damage are available.





Each nation blames the other for starting the fighting that flared in July and December.




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