Local people in Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, have read the signed article by Chinese President Xi Jinping in Cambodian media and expressed their fervent anticipation of the Chinese leader's visit.
Cambodia is the last stop of Xi's Southeast Asia tour, including state visits to Vietnam and Malaysia. Before Xi's arrival in Phnom Penh on Thursday, Cambodian media outlets, including the Khmer Times, Jian Hua Daily, and Fresh News, published his signed article.
In the article titled "Together We Strive, Together We Thrive: Toward a Stable and Sustainable China-Cambodia Community with a Shared Future in the New Era," Xi said China has been Cambodia's largest trading partner and largest source of investment, with China-supported infrastructure projects bolstering the long-term development of the country.
"China has helped Cambodia build roads, facilitating people's travel. That's friendship," said Huang Ming, a local market vendor.
"When I hear the President is paying a visit, I am happy. As a Khmer, I offer my support," said Hang Chanthy, a newsstand owner.
In the article, Xi said that China and Cambodia should bring the mutual political trust to a higher level and expand the mutually beneficial cooperation of higher quality.
He described China's friendship with Cambodia as "ironclad" -- and his article reflects that friendship, reaffirming China's steadfast commitment to further enhancing bilateral relations.
Locals laud Cambodian-Chinese friendship, welcome Xi's visit
Ongoing Israeli military operations in Gaza and the West Bank have led to multiple deaths, arrests, and rising tensions, as both sides report violence and economic fallout.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement on Monday, saying that during operations in the southern Gaza Strip that day, IDF troops killed three "militants" who had crossed the "yellow line" of the military ceasefire. The statement added that IDF forces would remain deployed in the area and would continue operations to eliminate threats.
On the same day, the Palestinian Ministry of the Interior in the Gaza Strip issued a statement saying that Mahmoud Al-Astal, head of the police investigation department in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, was shot and killed. According to sources, Al-Astal was a key member of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). A Palestinian armed group in Gaza, backed by Israel, claimed responsibility for the shooting on Monday.
According to a report by the official Palestinian news agency on Monday, Israeli forces continued their raids across several areas of the West Bank and around Jerusalem, arresting more than 20 Palestinian residents and injuring one person. In some areas, the Israeli forces also conducted house searches, imposed roadblocks, and leveled farmland. Meanwhile, large numbers of Israeli Jewish settlers, under the protection of the Israeli military, entered Palestinian farmlands to graze livestock, damage olive trees, and assault Palestinian shepherds while attempting to seize animals, leading to clashes with local residents.
The Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture released a comprehensive report on Monday, saying that in 2025, the agricultural sector in the West Bank suffered systematic attacks by Israeli forces and Israeli Jewish settlers, resulting in direct economic losses exceeding 103 million U.S. dollars, an intensity rarely seen in recent years.
Tensions escalate as IDF operations continue in Gaza, West Bank
