Ramadan marred by violence in deep South
The Muslim holy month of Ramadan this year saw 49 violent incidents in the deep South, claiming 22 lives and wounding 47 others, the Deep South Watch Centre at Prince of Songkhla University’s Pattani Campus said.
Yala’s Muang district had the highest number of fatalities with four deaths, while Pattani’s Nong Chik district reported the highest number of injured persons at 22. Muang Pattani, meanwhile, topped the list with five violent incidents during the holy month from June 7 to July 2, the centre’s Deep South Incident Database team said.
The team said 24 of the incidents were considered an attack on national security, which resulted in three deaths and 37 injuries; eight other attacks that claimed six lives and wounded five others were said to be general crimes; while 17 incidents that resulted in 13 deaths and five injuries were under investigation. Shootings were the most common method with 28 incidents, followed by bombings at 16 and arson at three.
Four security officers or volunteers, also known as “hard targets”, were killed and 24 injured, while two insurgents were shot dead. The first 10 days of Ramadan saw 15 incidents with five deaths and 24 injuries, the second 10 days saw 19 incidents with five deaths and 11 injuries, and the third period saw 15 incidents with 12 deaths and 12 injuries.
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