Three Dead in Terror Strikes in Southern Thailand
The latest victims were a hired hand and a retired policeman killed in Pattani, and a motorcycle repair shop owner shot dead in Narathiwat. The three deaths all happened yesterday.
The killings follow the fatal shooting of a monk on his alms round in Khok Pho district of Pattani on Saturday morning. Two other monks were injured in the attack.
Security experts said insurgents had turned their attentions to monks and state officials in a bid to capture more media attention by targeting figures perceived to be at the spiritual heart of their communities.
The first fatality in Pattani yesterday came as Natthakorn Chanthip, 23, a hired hand, was driving his mother, Krua, 41, on a motorcycle to their home in tambon Bannok in Panare district.