THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Unrest flares in deep South despite planned talks

Unrest flares in deep South despite planned talks

DESPITE PEACE talks between Thai authorities and separatists being in the pipeline, unrest in the deep South flared up again with nine bomb attacks in Pattani’s Yaring district early yesterday, which resulted in one death and 12 others injured.

Pol Lt-General Chalermpan Achalaboon, chief of the Southern Border Police Operations Centre, said the attacks might have been carried out by members of Barisan Revolusi Nasional or Runda Kumpulan Kecil. 
Security officers sealed Tambon Yaring Municipality and ordered residents and children to stay indoors, as they swept the area for more threats in the morning. 
There were six explosions at around midnight in the municipality, of which three bombings did not result in injuries. 
The other three were on Na Wang Road, resulting in five police officers being injured, and two shops and two cars damaged. 
At 7.05am, a pipe bomb planted in front of a resident’s home next to the Yaring Post Office led to the death of painter Nit Klodphetch, 62, who was opening his gate at the time. A passer-by was also injured. 
 
Bomb-squad injuries
At 9.30pm, police was alerted about a bomb planted near a cemetery in Tambon Bang Pu, where they managed to disarm the bomb safely. While police were checking the nearby area, another bomb went off less than 10 metres away, resulting in six members of the bomb squad being injured – two of whom are in a critical condition. 
Earlier, at 5.30pm on Wednesday, Tambon Krado Administrative Organisation official Theerapong Pattanabutr, 43, was shot dead by two assailants on a motorbike in Yarang district as he was riding his motorcycle home. 
Police suspect the shooting was part of the ongoing unrest targeting state officials.
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