Images show abandoned belongings and mock police stations at a former scam center in Asia

O'SMACH, Cambodia (AP) — In the town of O’Smach, along Cambodia’s northern border with Thailand, stands a compound of abandoned buildings that were battered by shelling during recent weeks of armed clashes.

The site, now occupied by Thai troops, had served as one of Cambodia’s notorious scam centers, according to Thai officials.

A six-story building, shown to journalists and international observers on Monday during a trip organized by the Thai military, is scattered with documents, equipment and personal belongings, likely abandoned in haste.

“They are well-organized. They have good infrastructure and systems, and also the workflow and many, many tactics and techniques to do the scams,” said Lt. Gen. Teeranan Nandhakwang, director of the Thai army’s intelligence unit.

Experts say such scam operations in Cambodia and elsewhere have cheated people around the world out of billions of dollars and tricked people from many countries to work in them under slave-like conditions.

The Thai military said the compound was secured during the December clashes because Cambodian forces had used it as a military base.

A ceasefire reached in December stipulated that the warring sides would de-escalate tensions and hold their forces at the positions they occupied prior to the agreement. That includes the compound on Cambodian soil now occupied by Thai troops.

Dozens of rooms have wooden booths lined with foam for soundproofing, scripts written in multiple languages, lists of names and phone numbers, computer monitors and empty brackets for hard drives.

There are also mock-up sets resembling police stations and uniforms of law enforcement of at least seven countries: China, Australia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and Brazil.

One room has a replica of what appears to be a Vietnamese bank branch, complete with service counters, banners and a waiting area.

The set-ups served as essential to a scam where people are targeted by scam operators pretending to be officials or other authority figures. Scripted approaches were meant to threaten arrest or other legal action unless instructions were followed.

A view of buildings that Thai authorities believe were being used for scam operations in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai soldier keeps guard outside a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai policeman inspects a damaged work station at a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai policeman inspects a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai soldier inspects a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

An Australian flag lies on the floor of an abandoned bedroom at a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Thai soldiers inspect a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Fake dollar bills lie on the floor at a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai journalist wears a fake Singapore police uniform at a mock-up set resembling a police station inside a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A work station lined with foam for soundproofing is seen inside a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai soldier walks at a at scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai solider inspects a work station inside a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A mock-up set resembling an Australian police station is seen at a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai soldier inspects a work station with wooden phone booths lined with foam for soundproofing, inside a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Thai soldiers inspect an abandoned bedroom at a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Thai media inspect what appears to be a mock-up set resembling a Chinese police station at a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A journalist walks inside a damaged work station at a scam compound in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A fake Indonesian police shirt hangs inside a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

An abandoned bedroom is seen at a scam center in O Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

A Thai soldier keeps guard outside a scam center in O'Smach, Cambodia, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

NEW YORK (AP) — Kamala Harris “wrote off rural America" during the 2024 presidential campaign and failed to attack Donald Trump with sufficient “negative firepower," according to a long-awaited post-election autopsy released on Thursday by the Democratic National Committee.

The committee's chair, Ken Martin, shared the 192-page report only after facing intense internal pressure from frustrated Democratic operatives concerned with his leadership. Martin had originally promised to release the autopsy, only to keep it under wraps for months because he was concerned it would be a distraction ahead of the midterms as Democrats mobilize to take back control of Congress.

On Tuesday, Martin apologized for his handling of the situation and conceded that the report was withheld because it “was not ready for primetime."

Although the autopsy criticizes Democrats' focus on “identity politics,” it sidesteps some of the most controversial elements of the 2024 campaign. The report does not address former President Joe Biden’s decision to seek reelection, the rushed selection of Harris to replace him on the ticket or the party's acrimonious divide over the war in Gaza.

“I am not proud of this product; it does not meet my standards, and it won’t meet your standards,” Martin wrote in an essay on Substack on Thursday. “I don’t endorse what’s in this report, or what’s left out of it. I could not in good faith put the DNC’s stamp of approval on it. But transparency is paramount.”

A spokesperson for Harris did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The initial reaction from Democratic operatives was a mix of bafflement and anger over Martin's handling of the situation.

“Why not say this in 2024, or bring in more people to finish it, instead of turning this into the dumbest media cycle for 7-8 months?” Democratic strategist Steve Schale wrote on social media.

The postelection report, which was authored by Democratic consultant Paul Rivera, calls for “a renewed focus on the voters of Middle America and the South, who have come to believe they are not included in the Democratic vision of a stronger and more dynamic America for everyone.”

“Millions of Americans are suffering from poor access to healthcare, manufacturing and job losses, and a failing infrastructure, yet continue to be persuaded to vote against their best interests because they do not see themselves reflected in the America of the Democratic Party,” the report says.

The autopsy points to a reduction in support and training for Democratic state parties, voter registration shifts and “a persistent inability or unwillingness to listen to all voters.”

Thursday's release comes as Martin confronts a crisis of confidence among party officials who are increasingly concerned about the health of their political machine barely a year into his term. Some Democratic operatives have had informal discussions about recruiting a new chair, even though most believe that Martin’s job wasn't in serious jeopardy ahead of the midterm elections.

The report found that Harris and her allies failed to focus enough on Trump's negatives, especially his felony convictions. This was part of a broader criticism that Democrats' messaging is too focused on reason and winning arguments, “even in cycles when the electorate is defined by rage.”

“There was a decision in the 2024 Democratic leadership not to engage in negative advertising at the scale required,” the report states. “The Trump campaign and supportive Super PACs went full throttle against Vice President Harris, but there was not sufficient or similar negative firepower directed at Trump by Democrats.”

The report continues: “It was essential to prosecute a more effective case as to why Trump should have been disqualified from ever again taking office. The grounds were there, but the messaging did not make the case.”

Trump's attack on Harris' transgender policies were cited as a key contrast.

Specifically, the report suggested the Democratic nominee was “boxed” in by the Trump campaign's “very effective” ad that highlighted Harris' previous statement of support for taxpayer-funded gender-affirming surgeries for prison inmates.

Democratic pollsters believed that “if the Vice President would not change her position – and she did not – then there was nothing which would have worked as a response," the report said.

The report criticized Harris' outreach to key segments of America while condemning the party's focus on “identity politics.”

“Harris wrote off rural America, assuming urban/suburban margins would compensate. The math doesn’t work,” the report says. “You can’t lose rural areas by overwhelming margins and make it up elsewhere when rural voters are a significant share of the electorate. If Democrats are to reclaim leadership in the Heartland or the South, candidates must perform well in rural turf. Show up, listen, and then do it again.”

The report also references Democrats' underperformance with male voters of color.

“Male voters require direct engagement. The gender gap can be narrowed. Deploy male messengers, address economic concerns, and don’t assume identity politics will hold male voters of color,” it says.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event about loosening a federal refrigerant rule, in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a fireside chat on Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

FILE - Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at DNC headquarters, Jan. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert, File)