May 14, 2026
PHNOM PENH – Content creator Kevin Smith, a long-term Cambodian resident, has described how Thai soldiers firing warning shots near him as he visited the O’Smach area, where part of Cambodian territory is currently under occupation by Thai military. The British national said the shots could possibly be intended to scare off people visiting the contested area.
“Thai soldiers just fired at me in O’Smach, where they are illegally occupying Cambodian sovereign territory, for simply trying to speak truth about the situation. I was unarmed, unprotected, unprovocative. All I had was a camera,” he said, via social media, today, May 13.
In a video clip posted shortly afterwards, two shots were heard. Smith says four shots were fired, and that the Thai military warned him not to film in the area.
Smith told The Post that he went to O’Smach today to address what he called the “hypocrisy” of Thailand, as they are simultaneously requesting bilateral discussions on maritime issues and at the same time refusing bilateral talks regarding the border regions.
“My aim was to expose this hypocrisy. This was my second visit to O’Smach. I wanted to highlight the fact that they fired shots when diplomats were present two weeks ago. I did not expect them to fire again, as that would be unwise. I moved quite close — about halfway along the casino and roughly 20 metres from the barbed wire — and began filming my video,” he said.
“All of a sudden, there was a series of loud bangs. They caught me in the middle of making a mistake while speaking, so I cut that specific clip out. After the first two shots, I finished the video I was making because I didn’t want to leave it incomplete. The soldiers then advised me to take shelter, so we moved to the side of the road, where another two rounds were fired,” he explained.
He said his cameraman stayed behind to get some B-roll from a safe area, while Thai soldiers shouted insults and gestured at him, even using their middle fingers.
“All I was doing was speaking the truth. On April 29, they fired nine warning shots at international officials, and then claimed they were fireworks. This is proof they were not, and Thailand were lying. 4 shots in total were fired today,” he explained earlier.
Gunfire was reported by the Ministry of National Defence on the morning of April 29, during an inspection visit by the Military Attaché Corps to Phnom Penh (MACPP). The ministry noted then that the display appeared to be contrary to the spirit of the current ceasefire between Cambodia and Thailand.
Defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata claimed at the time that the shots, from M-16 rifles and M-79 grenade launchers, occurred as the attachés were observing the O’Smach International Border Checkpoint in Oddar Meanchey province, the same place where Smith experienced heard firing.
He has come to prominence for his trips to contested areas since the December 27 ceasefire, often in places where the Thai military has placed razor wire barricades and shipping containers. He has protested the Thai occupation on several occasions, most notably by spray painting the words “Thiefland” and “ចោរ”, the Khmer word for thief, on roadsigns and shipping containers, often while wearing a Cambodian flag as a cape.
“Am I scared? No. Am I deterred? No. I do this for this country; my life is for Cambodia. My mission has been clear since December when I began visiting these borders, spraying the containers, and confronting Thai soldiers. My message has always been clear: I am doing this to get the truth out to the world, even if it costs me my life,” he told The Post.