4 suspected insurgents shot dead in Pattani
Further to a story published yesterday by The Thaiger, a total of 4 suspected insurgents are now reported to have been shot dead in separate firefights in the southern Pattani province on Friday evening and Saturday morning, as security forces close in on a fifth suspect. The first clash followed an earlier gunfight in which 3 soldiers were wounded while security forces were hunting for the perpetrators of a bombing that killed a ranger last Thursday. 2 gunmen were shot dead and their weapons seized in Yarang district yesterday morning as officers resumed operations to arrest the suspects.
A spokesman for the Region 4 Forward Command of the Internal Security Operations Command report that earlier in the day, local residents were evacuated to a safe area and asked to follow orders from authorities as the suspects were heavily armed. The deputy director of the Region 4 Forward Command then went to Yarang district to monitor the situation as gunfire continued.
The spokesman identified the men shot dead on Friday as Masukee Sarumor, believed to be the head of the Runda Kumpulan Kecil insurgent movement, who was already wanted on 2 arrest warrants in security-related cases, and Anwar Kolae, an operational member who was also wanted in a security-related case.
The identities and criminal records of the 2 men shot on Saturday are still being verified.
Thailand’s southernmost provinces, along the border with Malaysia, are home to a decades old separatist insurgency
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
