Preah Vihear Temple Damaged by Recent Border Clashes

Three months after a ceasefire halted intense border clashes between Cambodia and Thailand, the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple in Cambodia stands scarred by artillery fire, its ancient structures at risk of further collapse amid a fragile peace.

Perched on a 525-meter cliff in the Dangrek Mountains, the temple, known as Phra Viharn in Thailand, has long been a flashpoint in a territorial dispute dating to the 1950s. Built by the Khmer Empire, the same civilization behind Angkor Wat 160 kilometers to the southwest, it honors the Hindu god Shiva and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2008. The International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty over the temple and a small surrounding area of less than five square kilometers to Cambodia in 1962, a ruling it reaffirmed in 2013. Yet sporadic violence has persisted, including clashes in 2008 and 2011 driven by nationalist sentiments in Thailand.

The latest fighting erupted in July and escalated in December, leaving the site battered. A recent statement from Cambodia's Culture Ministry detailed damage at 142 locations from the initial clashes and 420 more during the prolonged December battle. All five of the temple's...