A policeman who asked not to be named said the displaced families were being evacuated from the temple grounds because of safety concerns after a few Thai jets flew nearby.
Thailand and Cambodia dispute the colonial-era demarcation of their 800km frontier, where competing claims to historic temples have spilt over into armed conflict.
This week’s clashes are the deadliest since five days of fighting in July that killed dozens before a shaky truce was agreed, following intervention by Trump.
Both sides blame each other for instigating the reignited conflict, which has expanded to five provinces of both Thailand and Cambodia, according to an AFP tally of official accounts.
A Thai defence ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday that more than 400,000 civilians have been evacuated to shelters.
‘Run for my life’
Sugarcane farmer Niam Poda fled her home – just 5km from the frontier – in Thailand’s border province of Sa Kaeo for the second time in five months.
The 62-year-old said she was doing laundry on Monday when a loud explosion rang out.
“I just had to run for my life as soon as I could,” she told AFP at an evacuation centre, adding that she had left her medicines behind.
“Whatever happens next, I hope peace will come so I can go back to caring for my sugarcane in peace.”
The Thai military announced an overnight curfew from 7pm to 5am in parts of Sa Kaeo beginning Wednesday night.
In Cambodia, more than 101,000 people have been evacuated to shelters and relatives’ homes, defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata told reporters.
“The Thai army fired indiscriminately into civilian areas and schools and especially shelled Ta Krabey temple,” she said, calling the contested border temple a “sacred site of Cambodia”.
Maly Socheata later said the Cambodian death toll had climbed to nine civilians, including an infant.
The Thai army, meanwhile, said Cambodian forces fired rockets early on Wednesday that landed in the vicinity of the Phanom Dong Rak Hospital in Surin province – which was struck during previous clashes in July this year.
Cambodia withdrew on Wednesday from the Southeast Asian Games taking place in Thailand, citing safety concerns for its athletes.
The United States, China and Malaysia, as chair of the regional bloc Asean, brokered a ceasefire in July.
In October, Trump backed a follow-on joint declaration, touting new trade deals with Thailand and Cambodia after they agreed to prolong their truce.
But Thailand suspended the agreement the following month.
During a speech to supporters in the US on Tuesday, Trump listed various conflicts he claims to have resolved, concluding with Cambodia and Thailand.
“Tomorrow, I have to make a phone call, and I think they’ll get it,” he said of the Southeast Asian neighbours.
Thailand’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Nikorndej Balankura, told reporters that the fighting would eventually end through talks, but now was not the time for dialogue.
“If any third country wants to mediate, Thailand can’t accept that at this stage because the line has been crossed,” he said.
“Thai citizens have been killed and we need to ensure there is enough trust before talks can begin.”
UN human rights chief Volker Turk told journalists in Geneva that agreements between Thailand and Cambodia “have yet to translate into effective protection of civilians on the ground”.
Pope Leo XIV has called for a ceasefire and offered his prayers for those fleeing the fighting at his weekly audience at the Vatican.
- Agence France-Presse
