Dozens of desperate Cambodian migrants were arrested while trying to illegally enter Thailand.

The workers reportedly crossed through natural border channels before being caught by soldiers in Sa Kaeo province on September 8.

Footage shows troops questioning the workers and inspecting their luggage.

The migrants claimed they had previously worked in Thailand but returned to Cambodia in early August amid retaliatory border closures between the two countries. However, they were forced to return to Thailand as there were no jobs waiting for them in their home country.

They reportedly paid three Cambodian guides 5,000 to 6,000 Baht per person to help them slip back into Thailand. However, the guides abandoned them in the chaos when they were discovered by Thai soldiers moving through the sugarcane field in the Ban Kut Hin area.

Colonel Chainarong Kasee, commander of the Aranyaprathet Special Task Force, said 33 Cambodian men and 17 women were detained.

He said: 'Since the border closure in June 17, the Aranyaprathet Special Task Force has successfully intercepted 329 Cambodian migrants across 84 entry attempts.

'In addition, authorities also arrested 288 Thais, six Chinese, six Nigerians, 21 Burmese, one Sierra Leonean, and three Bangladeshis for illegal entry.'

He added that the 50 arrested migrants were deported back to Cambodia through the Ban Laem border checkpoint in Chanthaburi.

A bloody military confrontation flared in long-disputed border areas as Thailand and Cambodia accused each other of instigating the violence on July 24.

The Thai army claimed the clash began when six armed Cambodian soldiers approached a Thai outpost after a drone was heard near a disputed Khmer temple. Thai troops said they shouted warnings and claimed the Cambodians opened fire first.

However, Cambodia's Defence Ministry accused Thailand of provoking the violence, saying its forces acted in self-defence.

Officials said that dozens of people have been killed and more than 300,000 displaced on both sides of the border.

Both sides have reached a shaky truce following talks facilitated by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).