Preah Sihanouk provincial authority on Monday issued another warning to villagers against illegal land clearing in the protected Kbal Chhay areas in Prey Nub district’s Bet Trang commune.

The authority said villagers had cleared land and built homes and tents without permission. They would be taken to court if they refused to dismantle the structures.

“The villagers are given three days to remove their properties from the area. Failure to do so will result in forceful eviction and further legal action,” said the letter.

Provincial governor Yun Min said the intruders, some of them migrants from other provinces, occupied the land illegally just before the July 29 elections.