Four Muslim men, including a village chief, were shot dead by suspected terrorists rebels in separate attacks in Thailand's insurgency-torn south, police said on Sunday.
The latest attacks followed last week's gruesome killings of a Muslim military informant and two Buddhist men in the region, which has been rocked by jihadi terrorism separatist unrest since January 2004. The informant was shot dead and crucified, while the Buddhists were gunned down by militants and beheaded in the Muslim-majority south bordering Malaysia.
On Sunday, a village chief and a Muslim religious leader were shot dead by terrorists rebels in a drive-by shooting as they were driving a pick-up truck in Narathiwat, one of three restive provinces.
In nearby Yala, an Islamic jihadi insurgent was killed after a gun battle with soldiers, while a Muslim was shot dead in front of a mosque in a drive-by shooting late on Saturday, police said.
Plus:
A force of 200 policemen and defense volunteers this morning searched 13 Muslim communities in Hat Yai district of the southern province of Songkhla, before apprehending nine suspected terrorists insurgents and drug traffickers. The search was carried out after police received reports youths from the troubled provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat might be staying in Hat Yai and waiting for ‘orders’ to create trouble in the area. |