Thai villagers stay behind to feed animals and guard empty homes as border clashes force mass evacua скачать в хорошем качестве

Thai villagers stay behind to feed animals and guard empty homes as border clashes force mass evacua

(13 Dec 2025) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: ASSOCIATED PRESS Buriram Province, Thailand - 12 December 2025 1. Wide villager Somjai Kraiprakon who lives around 10km from the Cambodia border feeding dogs in village, part of her role as Village Security Volunteer 2. Close up dog eating 3. Various of Somjai feeding the dogs 4. Medium of Somjai speaking 5. SOUNDBITE (Thai) Somjai Kraiprakon, Village Security Volunteer: "I'm a woman here, so my responsibility is to take care of them, the dogs. This is my priority. The other things I let the men take care of them. I'm not good going out patrolling at night. Fortunately I'm good with dogs." 6. Wide of villagers rushing to bunker after artillery fire from Cambodia heard 7. Various of people in bunkers 8. Various of Somjai in the bunker 9. SOUNDBITE (Thai) Somjai Kraiprakon, Village Security Volunteer: "Personally I'm not scared. I kind of enjoy the sounds. I also prefer to be home." 10. Wide of security volunteers from another village feeding boars 11. Medium of boars eating 12. Various of volunteers feeding chickens 13. Various of village chief Praden Prajuabsook and security volunteers on roadside 14. SOUNDBITE (Thai) Praden Prajuabsook, village chief: "During these days, the villagers are not around, so sometimes we go take care of their livestock, feed them grass, for the owners not around. We also feed other animals like cats and dogs." 15. Various of security volunteer holding firearm riding motorbike 16. Medium of security volunteer with gun in front of Thai flags 17. SOUNDBITE (Thai) Praden Prajuabsook, village chief: "We are volunteers. We work without any compensation, nothing in return. We do it with our own will, for the brothers and sisters in our village." 18. Various of volunteers feeding dogs and puppies 19. Various of dog and puppy in front of bunker STORYLINE: Fighting that has flared along the Thai-Cambodian border has sent hundreds of thousands of Thai villagers fleeing from their homes close to the frontier since Monday. Their once-bustling communities have fallen largely silent except for the distant rumble of firing across the fields. Yet in several of these villages, where normally a few hundred people live, a few dozen residents have chosen to stay behind despite the constant sounds of danger. In a village in Buriram province, about 6 miles (10 kilometers) from the border, Somjai Kraiprakon and roughly 20 of her neighbors gathered around a roadside house, keeping watch over nearby homes. Appointed by the local administration as Village Security Volunteers, they guarded the empty homes after many residents were forced to flee and with fewer security officials stationed nearby than usual. Somjai said the volunteer team performs all these duties, keeping close watch on strangers and patrolling at night to discourage thieves from entering abandoned homes. Her main responsibility, however, is not monitoring threats but caring for about 70 dogs left behind in the community. “This is my priority. The other things I let the men take care of them. I’m not good at going out patrolling at night. Fortunately I’m good with dogs,” she said, adding that she first fed a few using her own money, but as donations began coming in, she was able to expand her feeding efforts. "Personally I'm not scared. I kind of enjoy the sounds. I also prefer to be home," she said. The army has emphasized the importance of volunteers like Somjai in this new phase of fighting, saying they help “provide the highest possible confidence and safety for the public.” AP Video by Tian Macleod Ji Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...