Violence raged Tuesday in Narathiwat's Rangae district where a soldier and a defence volunteer were killed and three other people critically wounded in three coordinated attacks.
Explosive ordnancedisposal and forensic officials examine one of the craters leftby threebomb blasts in tambon Chalerm in Narathiwat’s Rangae district yesterday. The bombs,detonated about 10-15 seconds apart, targetted a team of officialswho were travelling to investigate a gun attack at a nearby location.Noone wasinjured in the explosions. WAEDAOHARAI
Sgt Maj First Class Bang-ern Phanyu, 39, of the 45th Rangers Regiment, was killed in a gun attack while he was driving a pickup truck carrying two civilians.
The ambush took place near Kujing Lupa School in tambon Chalerm. One of the injured civilians was Nisoh Eduerae, 42, a member of the tambon Chalerm administration organisation. The other injured man was identified only as Somchit. Both were sent to Narathiwat Ratchanakharin Hospital.
Suriya Awaekuji, an assistant district chief of Rangae, and five defence volunteers rushed to inspect the shooting scene.
When they arrived, a second attack took place.
Three bombs had been planted on the road. They exploded, each about 10-15 seconds apart as Mr Suriya's team arrived at the scene.
The explosions caused no injuries.
The authorities set up a checkpoint about 1km away from the scene of the attack to prevent further attacks on officers inspecting the scene. Yet, two hours later, two men on a motorcycle opened fire on two defence volunteers at the checkpoint before fleeing.
Defence volunteer Adunan Salae, 34, was killed, while Mahama Chewa, 41, an assistant village chief, was seriously wounded.
Police said the three attacks were coordinated and part of an anticipated militant plot to strike at the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
Meanwhile, the structure of a new southern command centre is expected to take shape soon, according to Deputy Prime Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa.
Gen Yutthasak, who chairs the newly established body to tackle the southern insurgency, said the National Security Council will ensure there is no overlapping of work and that the centre's operations do not break the law.
Gen Yutthasak said the command centre does not have control over the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre (SBPAC) nor the Internal Security Operations Centre (Isoc).
Instead it will serve as a mechanism for supporting cooperation between the SBPAC and the Isoc, he said.
The deputy prime minister also played down criticism by the advisory council for the development and administration of the southern border provinces.
Aziz Benhawan, chairman of the advisory council, has suggested the new body be scrapped because of the danger that its functions will overlap with those of other agencies.
Isoc spokesman Maj-Gen Dithaporn Sasasamit said yesterday the command centre is a body set up to tackle southern problems.
"It is designed to screen the work so the prime minister's decision-making process is swift and efficient," he said.
Army Commander Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha said insurgents usually target seven urban areas in four southern border provinces for maximum and widespread impact.
He has pinned his hopes on incoming police chief Adul Saengsingkaew's plan to launch a "security police" force for the deep South.
He said Pol Gen Adul's plan to recruit former soldiers and train them will boost the government's security management capabilities and improve its performance in the troubled area.
