Cambodia to Attack Rebels in Thailand

GOVERNMENT forces will attack tanks belonging to Khmer Rouge guerrillas even if they are in Thai territory, the country's top leader, Premier Norodom Rannaridh, has warned.

Speaking Wednesday night on the eve of the Cambodian New Year, Mr. Rannaridh said he was losing patience over Thailand's failure to crack down on Khmer Rouge forces. Cambodian officials have charged repeatedly that the guerrillas use Thai territory for refuge.

Rannaridh also said reports in Thai newspapers Wednesday that the Khmer Rouge had recaptured its former base at Pailin were false and an indication that Thailand still stood behind the guerrilla group. Thai officials have consistently denied that they aid the guerrillas or let them transit through Thai territory.

The Khmer Rouge guerrillas have been fighting various administrations in Phnom Penh since it was ousted from power in 1979. The group signed a 1991 peace agreement meant to bring an end to the country's civil war, but then declined to join in the peacemaking process, which included United Nations-supervised elections last May.