AT LEAST 20 CAMBODIAN SOLDIERS KILLED IN MILLITARY BASE EXPLOSION, PM EXPRESSES CONDOLENCE

NEW DELHI: An explosion of ammunition in Cambodia killed at least 20 soldiers and left numerous others injured on Saturday afternoon, Prime Minister Hun Manet announced.

The blast took place around 2:45 pm (local time) at the army base in Kampong Speu province to the west of the capital, according to the PM, with the army saying that an entire truck of munitions had exploded.

Expressing his shock and "deepest condolences" to the families of those killed, the prime minister, on a Facebook post, said, "I am deeply shocked to receive the news of the ammunition explosion incident." The cause of the explosion remained unclear.

Photographs from the scene depicted severely damaged structures still emitting smoke, with at least one building's roof blown off, and injured soldiers receiving medical attention in a hospital. Other images showed residential homes with roof damage.

Such incidents are not common in Cambodia, which is awash with ammunition following decades of civil conflict -- accidents that are exacerbated by frequently lax safety standards.

According to Col. Youeng Sokhon, an army officer stationed at the site, four buildings—including three storage facilities and one work area—were obliterated, while several military vehicles sustained damage.

Cambodia's army said the incident was a "warehouse ammunition explosion", that had destroyed a truck fully loaded with weaponry.

An office building as well as nearby barracks were destroyed, with 25 nearby homes also battered by the resulting explosion.

In his statement, Hun Manet said he had ordered the defense minister and the commander-in-chief of Royal Cambodian Armed Forces to urgently arrange funerals for the soldiers who died and also to provide deceased's family members around USD 20,000 and injured soldiers would get USD 5,000.

Cambodia bears the scars of decades of civil war from the 1960s, resulting in the widespread presence of abandoned ammunition and weapons across the country.

In 2005, a tragic explosion occurred at a major military arms depot located approximately two kilometers outside the northwestern town of Battambang, claiming the lives of five Cambodians and injuring three others. The cause of the explosion and ensuing fire remained unclear.

The country has been plagued by fatalities caused by mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO), with approximately 20,000 individuals losing their lives since 1979, and twice as many sustaining injuries in landmine and UXO accidents.

In 2018, an Australian and a Cambodian lost their lives in a war-era ordnance explosion during a de-mining training exercise in southern Cambodia.

Efforts to clear mines and UXO persist, with the government committing to eliminate all such hazards by 2025. Despite ongoing clearance work, tragic incidents continue to occur. Recently, four individuals lost their lives due to UXO, according to the Cambodian Mine Action Centre.

Just last year, a startling discovery was made inside a school in northeastern Cambodia, unearthing thousands of pieces of UXO remnants from the civil war, including around 2,000 explosives.

(With inputs from agency)