Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has expressed support for a curfew in the far South after a string of attacks killed five soldiers and two other people in the region Sunday.
Police examine debris of a car that was carrying a massive, concealed bomb in tambon Tha Thong of Raman district in Yala province Sunday. The car bomb was detonated when a truck carrying troops was passing by. (Photo by Muhammad Ayub Pathan)
Another 11 people, both military and civilian, were also injured, including three children.
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In the deadliest attack, five soldiers were killed in a combined bomb and gun attack in Yala.
Six soldiers from Yala Task Force 12 were travelling in a six-wheeled truck in Raman district Sunday morning when they were attacked, first by a car bomb and then by gunmen.
The soldiers were on their way to pick up farm workers at Ban Upoh in tambon Wang Phaya as part of the army's security provision for civilian workers in the region.
Five of the soldiers were killed in the attack, and the sixth wounded.
Two rubber-tappers working nearby were also hurt.
Responding to the news, Ms Yingluck expressed her backing for Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung's call for a curfew to be imposed.
Mr Chalerm suggested the curfew, covering limited areas of the deep South, on Wednesday after the murders of two farmers in Pattani and four fruit traders in Yala last week.
The imposition of a curfew would be considered area-by-area and would be accompanied by other security measures, Ms Yingluck said.
Security officials will meet on Friday to discuss the plan.
The attack on the soldiers occurred at 7.05am Sunday on the Wang Phaya-Tha Thong road in tambon Tha Thong.
As the soldiers drove to pick up the farm workers, they found their route blocked by a pickup truck.
It was loaded with a homemade bomb weighing an estimated 50kg, which was detonated by militants hiding nearby. It was believed to be the biggest car bomb ever detonated in Thailand.
The explosion overturned the soldiers' truck, and then another pickup carrying six armed men arrived at the scene.
The militants shot dead five of the soldiers, stole their weapons and fled.
The five soldiers killed were Sgt Thirayuth Boontera, Pvt Isha Ba-ngoy, Pvt Pongthep Phadmak, Pvt Songchai Suwanmanee and Pvt Nuldee Reesen.
MSG Chatree Uthahorn was wounded.
Investigators found an ID card belonging to a 16-year-old from Narathiwat's Rueso district at the scene. He was rounded up for questioning.
Police said the pickup truck planted with the bomb may have belonged to Somsak Kwanma, a teacher at Ban Bango School in tambon Panan of Pattani's Mayo district, who was shot dead on Dec 11. Somsak's killers stole his vehicle after the attack.
About 2pm Sunday a group of eight rangers was attacked by militants in Narathiwat's Rangae district.
The rangers' pickup truck was overturned by an explosion from a bomb planted on a road leading to Ba-ngo Kubo village, Pol Lt Col Boonmee Thaion of Rangae police station said.
Four of the rangers were injured and taken to the district hospital, he said.
In Pattani, two people were shot dead and four others, including three children, were injured in separate shooting attacks.
The first incident took place in the early hours of Sunday in Yaring district. Lateh Awae, 56, was shot twice in the head and died in front of his house at Ban Dan village, tambon Talo Kapo.
About 1pm, police were alerted to the fatal shooting of a man on a local road in Sai Buri district. The victim was identified as Kriangsak Sermsarngsuk, 35, a tablet PC merchant from Bangkok.
He was found dead in the driver's seat of a sedan with several gunshot wounds.
Witnesses said two men on a motorcycle followed Kriangsak's car and the pillion rider opened fire at him.
In Nong Chik district, four people, including three children, were injured after suspected insurgents sprayed bullets at several houses about 6pm.
The injured were taken to Nong Chik Hospital. (Stories continue after the photo)
An Explosive Ordnance Disposal officer inspects the wreckage of a six-wheeled truck damaged by Sunday's car bomb. Gunmen opened fire on the truck just after it had been hit by the blast. They killed five soldiers and injured another. (Photo by Muhammad Ayub Pathan)
EARLIER REPORT
by Online Reporters
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said on Sunday that a curfew should be imposed in some southern border areas to counter insurgency in the restive region.
Ms Yingluck, however, called for a careful and thorough discussion on the decision which has been proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung and backed by army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha.
She said she did not want the imposition of a night curfew. But if it must be implemented, it should be carried out in certain areas where there's a credible necessity.
Authorities should take into account which localities had repeated incidents of violence and those which should be considered low-risk areas, as well as the adequacy of manpower, according to the prime minister.
She suggested that other alternative measures to be used in line with a curfew should also be discussed.
Bomb officers squad inspect a damaged military patrol vehicle in Raman district of Yala on Sunday following a bomb attack by suspected insurgents. (Photo by Maluding Dito)
Her stance followed a bomb attack which targetted soldiers in Raman district in Yala on Sunday morning, killing five of them and wounding one seriously.
Mr Chalerm proposed the curfew after farm instructors in Yaring district of Pattani were killed and fruit traders were slain in Krong Penang district of Yala over the last two weeks. He named the two districts as possible targets for a curfew.
Security officials including Mr Chalerm will meet on Friday to discuss the proposal.
Gen Prayuth on Saturday played down fears of the effect a curfew would have on locals, saying it would not mean a total ban on travelling. Those who needed to leave home during the restriction period could seek permission from authorities.
Somboon Ahmad Bualuang, a researcher at King Prajadhipok's Institute, and Srisompob Jitpiromsri, the director of Deep South Watch at Prince of Songkla University in Pattani, have warned of a setback if a curfew is imposed again on the region.
A curfew would inconvenience people and had shown in the past how effective it was in tackling violence, Mr Srisompob said on Saturday.
In Yala, police questioned a 16-year-old man from Rueso district of Narathiwat after they found his identification card at the crime scene where the soldiers were ambushed in Raman district.
The incident occurred at about 7.05am on Wang Phaya-Tha Thong road in tambon Tha Thong. Two rubber tappers working nearby also were wounded in the attack.
An investigation revealed that six army soldiers from the Yala Task Force 12 were travelling in a six-wheel truck after being assigned to pick up workers at a model farm at Ban Upoh in tambon Wang Phaya.
At a spot on Wang Phaya-Tha Thong road, the army truck was blocked by a pickup truck loaded with a home-made bomb weighing about 50kg.
Militants hiding on the road side detonated the bomb. The impact of the explosion overturned the soldiers' truck.
Another pickup truck with at least six militants then arrived at the scene. The militants shot five soldiers dead, stole their weapons and fled.
The five soldiers killed were Sgt Thirayuth Boontera, Pvt Isha Ba-ngoy, Pvt Pongthep Phadmak, Pvt Songchai Suwanmanee and Pvt Nuldee Reesen.
A pickup carrying rangers was severely damaged by a bomb on a road in Rangae district of Narathiwat on Sunday. (Photo by Waedao Harai)
Mst-Sgt Chatree Uthahorn was wounded.
Police said the pickup truck used for the car bomb might have belonged to Somsak Kwanma, a teacher at Ban Bango School in tambon Panan of Pattani's Mayo district, who was shot and killed on Dec 11 last year. The militants stole his vehicle after the attack.
The incident was exacerbated by another bomb attack on rangers four hours later in Rangae district in Narathiwat.
Four rangers were wounded after the bomb overturned a pickup. The bomb was planted on a road to Ba-ngo Kubo village, Pol Lt Col Boonmee Thaion of the Rangae police station said.
The rangers were on the way back to their base from military training and the injured were sent to the district hospital, he said.
The vehicle was severely damaged by the bomb.