PHNOM PENH (AFP) - A Cambodian court on Friday (Nov 13) issued an arrest warrant for opposition leader Sam Rainsy over an old defamation sentence that he never served, in a new surge of political tension in the kingdom.

Phnom Penh Municipal Court has ordered police "to arrest and bring the convict Sam Rainsy to serve the two-year defamation sentence in jail", according to a copy of the arrest warrant seen by AFP.