Published on December 13, 2005

January 4, 2004: Joh I Rong, Narathiwat, scores of militants raided an Army battalion and made off with more than 300 weapons.

April 28, 2004: Krue Se Mosque, Pattani, more than 100 insurgents armed with little more than machetes were gunned down by police at ten different outposts, while 32 armed men retreated to historic Krue Se mosque, where they stood their ground until security forces overpowered them with rockets and machine guns.

October 25, 2004: Tak Bai, Narathiwat, the day ended with the death of at least 85 unarmed demonstrators, 78 of whom died from suffocation after being stacked in the back of military transport trucks for several hours.

July 16, 2005: Yala, the government took advantage of a blitz in the heart of Yala to impose a controversial emergency decree. The day before, about 60 insurgents launched coordinated attacks in Muang district.

August 29, 2005: Ban Lahan, Narathiwat, security officials were defenceless as women and children formed a human shield to block attempts to retrieve the body of a local imam who was gunned down hours earlier. It marked the first time that women and children became involved in the tension between the ethnic Malay community and the government.

August 30, 2005: Rusoh and Joh I Rong, Narathiwat, at least 131 Thai Muslim villagers fled their homes reportedly in fear for their lives for northern Malaysia, where they took refuge in two local mosques. The incident prompted a storm of diplomatic squabbling between governments as both sides turned to “microphone diplomacy” to make their point.

September 21, 2005: Tanyonglimo, Narathiwat, two marines were taken hostage by villagers immediately after assailants attacked the village teashop with automatic rifles and shotguns, killing two and injuring four. Suspected insurgents sneaked back into the village and beat to death the two marines during the 19-hour drama.

November 16, 2005: Ban Bo-ngo, Rangae district, Narathiwat, authorities waited 11 hours before entering a crime scene where a family of nine were brutally gunned down.

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