Seven Insurgents Arrested for Deadly Attack in Southern Thailand

Authorities in Southern Thailand have arrested seven suspected insurgents for the killing of 15 villagers in Yala province. Two checkpoints manned by civilian defence volunteers were attacked Tuesday leaving 15 dead.

The ambush is considered the deadliest attack in the years long insurgency in Thailand’s deep south.

Raids carried out by the military in Yala and Pattani provinces netted seven suspected insurgents.

DNA Searched from Blood at Killing Zone

Authorities also found bloodied gauze in the home of a local village doctor near the crime scene.  DNA from blood found on the gauze is being matched the blood traces left from killing zone.

 

No group has stepped forward to claim responsibility in this attack, as is the case with most incidents in the deep south.

The region is also under martial law. Checkpoints have been setup in remote villages throughout the deep south. Security forces have also been given the right to detain any person without warrant.

More than 15 years of conflict in Southern Thailand

All suspects have been moved to the notorious Inkayuth military camp in Pattani province, authorities reported. Inkayuth army’s largest detention centre in southern Thailand. The detention center has been accused of horrific torture tactics according to Rights groups.

A Muslim man who was detained there in July was left in a coma after an interrogation session. Abdulloh Esormusor died in August and an army probe found that his death could have been due to “suffocation”.

Anger had snowballed over the case, with groups saying they suspected “foul play” in Abdulloh’s case. Many have called for an international probe, however little has happened.

The three southern Thailand provinces have been in the grips of conflict for more than 15-year. The conflicts has seen more than 7,000 people killed in southern Thailand.

News Source: AFP, Bangkok Post