Pattani blast injures four soldiers
FOUR SOLDIERS were wounded yesterday when their pickup truck was caught in a bomb blast in the southernmost province of Pattani.
The victims were identified as Second Lieutenant Manas Thong-ngern and three rangers, Theptara Chonsakhon, Bancha Apaijit and Thirasak Koinaphan.
Thirasak was the most seriously injured of the four, suffering a ruptured lung.
The men were returning to their base in Kapho district when their pickup was hurled 50 metres by the explosion. The bomb had been planted on a motorcycle and sidecar that had been stolen two years ago.
Officials who inspected the scene said the bomb had gone off at full force.
A source said officials believe the attack may have been the work of the Runda Kumpulan Kecil (RKK), a militant Islamic group that has sought to fan violence in the deep South. The region has been reeling from violent unrest for about a decade.
