Two Thai soldiers killed in Cambodia border clash: army

BANGKOK, April 3, 2009 (AFP) - Two Thai soldiers were killed and another 10 wounded in a border clash with Cambodian forces on Friday, army officials said, updating an earlier toll.

One of the soldiers died at the site of the clash near a disputed 900-year-old temple and the other died later in hospital, said regional Thai army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Wichit Makarun.

The toll was confirmed by a second army official speaking on condition of anonymity, who added that the military was already sending the bodies back to their home towns.

Soldiers exchanged rocket, machinegun and mortar fire near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on the frontier, following a brief skirmish earlier in the day, officials from both sides said.

The area was the scene of several clashes last year after Cambodia successfully applied for United Nations world heritage status for the ruins in July, with four soldiers killed in a battle there in October.

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