MONDAY, JANUARY 14, 2008
11:20 MECCA TIME, 8:20 GMT
Thai army hit by deadly ambush
Thai soldiers regularly escort women and children to
school in the southern part of the country [AFP]
Eight soldiers have been killed in an ambush by
separatist fighters on an army convoy in Thailand's
Muslim-majority south, according to an army spokesman.
He said the soldiers were ambushed on Monday morning
in Narathiwat, one of three provinces along the
Malaysian border wracked by four years of separatist
violence.
"The eight soldiers were killed after they escorted a
group of teachers to school," he said.
"The soldiers were travelling on two motorcycles and a
humvee when separatists opened fire, he said.
Chakkrote Nongmanee, a Thai police lieutenant who
inspected the site, said: "One of the soldiers was
beheaded. His head was found 50 metres away from the
scene of the attack."
The army was investigating reports that the convoy was
also hit by a roadside bomb, he said.
Chakkrote said the initial investigation showed that
about 20 suspected separatists were hiding behind a
bush along the roadside.
Police found 10 weapons left in the area, including
eight M16 assault rifles, a submachine gun and a
pistol, he said.
'No escalation'
Surayud Chulanont, the Thai prime minister, said
Monday's incident was a routine ambush with an
unusually high number of victims.
"This kind of clash can happen any time. It is not a
serious escalation" of the conflict, he said.
"Authorities will have to investigate and not allow it
to happen again."
The attack was the deadliest incident in the region
since June 2007, when seven soldiers were killed in a
similar ambush of a security team protecting
teachers.
The ambush came about one hour after a roadside bomb
targeted another convoy of eight soldiers protecting
teachers in neighbouring Yala province, local police
said.
Decades of conflict
The southern part of Thailand was an autonomous Malay
Muslim sultanate until Buddhist Thailand annexed it in
1902, provoking decades of animosity towards the
state.
More than 90 per cent of Thailand's 65 million people
are Buddhist, and many of the country's Muslims have
long complained of being treated as second-class
citizens.
More than 2,800 people have been killed since fighting
began in January 2004.
Attacks have grown increasingly brutal in recent
months, with victims beheaded, mutilated and even
crucified in what analysts say is an attempt to spark
a backlash and create divisions between Buddhists and
Muslims.
---------------
Jusfiq Hadjar gelar Sutan Maradjo Lelo
Allah yang disembah orang Islam tipikal dan yang digambarkan oleh al-Mushaf itu
dungu, buas, kejam, keji, ganas, zalim lagi biadab hanyalah Allah fiktif.
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