Security has been beefed up at public places and tourist areas after a warning from the United States of a potential Islamic State terror attack.
SNIFFING OUT DANGER: A police dog helps inspect luggage at Suvannabhumi airport, one of several key tourist sites across the country where security has been tightened.
Despite local authorities claiming there are no IS followers in Thailand, security has been tightened at border checkpoints around the country.
Deputy police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul held a meeting yesterday of units responsible for intelligence, security and immigration to discuss the warning and the possibility of terrorist attacks as IS expands its influence in Southeast Asia.
Pol Gen Srivara said intelligence reports indicate the IS has no followers or base in the country, but added that authorities will not lower their guard.
Security officials have been told to follow a 16-point guide of preventive measures, he said. These include surveillance in community areas, shopping malls and tourist hotspots and checking on people who have overstayed their visas. Security will also be tightened at all borders, he said.
Various checks are also being carried out by Immigration Bureau officials as part of these orders, Pol Gen Srivara said.
He also cited intelligence reports which found no sign that southern insurgents were planning attacks outside their own areas.
Sources at the Special Branch said detectives are deployed regularly to risk areas and no movement of any terror groups has been detected.
The warning from the US spurred an increase in action by security officials who are following the information closely, sources said.
The warning was first sent from a special assistant at the US embassy in Bangkok to the Royal Thai Police. It was then referred to in an order by national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda on Jan 29 and sent on to the Immigration Bureau.
Pol Maj Gen Chartchai Tang-eiam, deputy chief of the Immigration Bureau, later included the warning in a notification letter on Monday to immigration commissioner Nathathorn Prousoontorn.
The warning highlighted the potential for attacks in public places, such as shopping malls, tourist spots, entertainment venues, and public transport systems.
The IS group is thought to be trying to expand its influence in Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia and Malaysia, and may be getting closer to Thailand, officials said.
National Security Council secretary-
general Thawip Netniyom said the US warning was not specifically about Thailand, but referred to the whole region.
"Our intelligence units have been working hard on this and similar warnings since late last year. We are not ignoring anything. People should not panic," he said.
BTS president Arnat Arpapirom said skytrain security is on full alert. A total of 394 security guards have been deployed across the network's 34 stations, while two police dogs are roaming between stations.
Authorities in Sa Kaeo province, which borders Cambodia, have also stepped up security measures. Pol Col Benjapol Rodsawas, deputy chief of Sa Kaeo immigration police, has ordered his men to work with local paramilitary rangers to set up checkpoints near the border in Aranyaprathet district to screen foreign arrivals.
The key targets are Cambodian and Vietnamese Muslims who enter Thailand from Cambodia's Poipet and head to Malaysia, officers said.