Chinese coast guard personnel and Philippine Navy sailors exchanged blows Monday during a confrontation at the disputed Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, leaving a Filipino sailor injured and prompting both governments to accuse the other of starting the fight.
The Philippine military said a Chinese coast guard crew struck an unarmed Filipino sailor on the head with a wooden baton during the encounter, causing a deep laceration. Philippine officials said the clash occurred near the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded naval vessel that serves as Manila’s military outpost on the reef, known in the Philippines as Ayungin Shoal.
Video released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed Chinese and Philippine personnel grappling from small boats positioned alongside each other. The footage captured both sides swinging poles and other objects during the brief confrontation. Philippine authorities also released photographs showing the wounded sailor receiving treatment for his head injury.
Philippine military personnel and the Chinese coast guard got into a fight at sea
Philippine Navy personnel and the Chinese coast guard clashed on small boats in a disputed area. Oars, poles, and batons were used during the confrontation.
One of the Philippine sailors was hit… pic.twitter.com/UabLPC92OP
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) July 20, 2026
The Armed Forces of the Philippines releases additional footage of the July 20 confrontation at Ayungin Shoal, saying Philippine Navy personnel were conducting a lawful and non-confrontational operation to drive away a China Coast Guard rigid hull inflatable boat that approached… pic.twitter.com/olecpVIafz
— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) July 21, 2026
China rejected the Philippine account and accused the Filipino crew of provoking the incident. The China Coast Guard said two Philippine rubber boats approached its patrol vessel in what it described as a dangerous manner and claimed Philippine personnel attacked Chinese officers with paddles and long poles.
“The Philippine personnel maliciously attacked Chinese law enforcement personnel using oars and long sticks,” the China Coast Guard said in a statement.
The China Coast Guard (CCG) has urged the Philippines to immediately stop infringements, provocations and groundless hype after Philippine personnel from an illegally grounded vessel aggressively harassed a small CCG patrol boat near China’s Ren’ai Jiao on Monday.
At around 9… pic.twitter.com/jbKcixdpHn
— China Military Bugle (@ChinaMilBugle) July 20, 2026
Philippine officials disputed that claim. Defense officials said the Chinese crew initiated the violence while Philippine sailors were conducting routine operations near the Sierra Madre. Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela condemned the incident, saying the sailor was struck despite posing no threat.
“Striking an unarmed sailor on the head with a baton inside our own exclusive economic zone is not law enforcement. It is unlawful aggression, plain and simple,” Tarriela said.
The Philippine Department of National Defense said the incident demonstrated what it called a continuing pattern of coercive and hostile actions by China in disputed waters. It said Philippine personnel acted with restraint despite the confrontation.
The clash unfolded only days before Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was scheduled to visit Manila for meetings connected to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, placing additional attention on already strained relations between the two countries.
Second Thomas Shoal remains one of the region’s most sensitive maritime flashpoints. The Philippines intentionally grounded the former U.S.-built landing ship BRP Sierra Madre on the reef in 1999 to reinforce its territorial claim. A small contingent of Philippine Marines continues to occupy the aging vessel, relying on periodic resupply missions that have frequently drawn interference from Chinese coast guard and maritime militia vessels.
China claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea despite a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration that found Beijing’s expansive claims have no legal basis under international law. China rejected the ruling and continues to enforce its claims through regular coast guard patrols.
The latest confrontation follows a series of increasingly dangerous encounters in the disputed waters. In June 2024, a Philippine Navy sailor lost a thumb during a violent Chinese attempt to block a resupply mission to the Sierra Madre. Since then, both countries have continued accusing each other of unsafe maneuvers and aggressive actions near contested reefs and shoals.
The United States has repeatedly stated that its Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines applies to armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, and aircraft, including those operating in the South China Sea. U.S. officials have warned that actions raising the risk of miscalculation threaten regional stability but had not publicly commented on Monday’s incident as of publication.
