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| Southeast Asia |
| 8 dead in 2 attacks in southern Thailand |
| 2007-05-09 |
| Insurgents on Wednesday killed seven soldiers with a bomb detonated under their truck as they patrolled Rangae district of Narathiwat province in the deep South, police said. The explosion occurred at mid-afternoon near Bongo village, Rangae district of Narathiwat (about 790km south of Bangkok) near a hilltop where a Thai patrol on March 2 had surprised a group of Runda Kampulan Kecil (RKK), and killed five. All seven soldiers in the pickup truck on Wednesday were killed. Other booby trapped bombs and nails thrown on the road prevented authorities from immediately getting to the scene. "This was an act of revenge for the deaths of their people two months ago," said Rangae Pol Col Manot Anantarikul, blaming the attack on the RKK, one of a dozen insurgent groups engaged in a separatist struggle in Thailand's three southernmost provinces - Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala. Plus: A Muslim father was killed and his son injured allegedly by Muslim insurgents in this southern border province at noon Wednesday, police said. Police said Halim Sara, 41, was riding a motorcycle with his son, Dailamee Sara, 12, on a village road in Moo 4 Village in Tambon Lohhaloh of Raman district at 12:40 pm when an unknown number of insurgents opened fire at them. Police said Halim died at the scene and his son was severely injured and rushed to the district hospital. |
| Posted by:ryuge |
| #2 I wish I knew more about what was going on in Thailand myself. My only connection to Thailand comes from a trip I took there around 10 years ago. I went to Bangkok and then took a small trek through the mountains in the north of the country. I enjoyed my visit immensely. Not only was the place beautiful, but I loved the Thai people that I met as well. After I returned home, I always thought that I might want to return someday and check out the famous beaches in the south. Years later, after I started posting articles here, I became aware that the terrorist incidents in southern Thailand, that I would hear about from time to time, were just the tip of the iceburg. So I decided to start posting any articles about the jihad in Thailand that I discovered, so that others could see how intense the struggle had become there. I am bewildered as to many aspects of what is going on there. For instance, sometimes the jihadis are portrayed to be completely mysterious bands who refuse to communicate any demands. Other times whole villages seem to be in on the plans and, at still others, "spokesmen" - from Sweden, of all places, are quoted. And I am astonished by the fanatic commitment to appeasement by the government in the face of the obvious contempt the jihadis have for such policies. I also suspect that certain aspects of the jihad get downplayed in the MSM for whatever reason, and I wonder if local reporters may know things that would help clarify the situation, but don't report them. Sometimes people who do have more of an inside viewpoint add comments to the articles I post. One of them, Lone Ranger, had mentioned that he has lived in Thailand for some time and has filled in some details in the past (I remember him explaining why many Thais - at first - thought the New Year's bombings in Bangkok were not related to the jihad, for example). In fact, hoping that better informed people will comment is one of the reasons I like posting here so much. I pray that the Thai people will get the strength to fight this menace head on with all the decisiveness it will require. I would love to be able to post some articles that don't leave me with the sense of helpless despair that I get whenever I look for the latest atrocities in southern Thailand on most mornings. |
| Posted by: ryuge 2007-05-09 18:32 |
| #1 Ryuge - What exactly is going on here. It's a daily barrage of Muslim on Buddhist, Muslim on Muslim and Muslim on Government. I never hear which is typical of any government/police action against the "militants". Besides the beating the government gave out at the Mosque a few years back we've got nada. No more Thaksin origami, when does the Thai, Military Government get serious. I know Boonie is a Muslim, but there is no way he can look at this as a positive? Plus he seems like a nationalist and not driven by an islamic agenda. I need some information, my current opinion is of disgust over the lack of retaliation of offensive oppeations. PS Didn't Thaksin have an anti-Yaba campaign that killed some 2,000 drug dealers? What gives? |
| Posted by: Rightwing 2007-05-09 08:41 |