South: Man shot dead in front of wife, kids
A man believed to be a plain clothes security officer carrying an AK47 rifle walks past a local vendor in downtown Pattani, the heart of Thailand’s Muslim South where daily violence continues to take its toll.
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A female police officer narrowly escaped death yesterday after a bomb hidden underneath her pickup truck went off, while two young men were shot dead elsewhere in the deep South.
Marokasi Lateh, 23, was found face down in a pool of blood on the side of a road in Tambon Suwaree in Rusoh district. His body was riddled with shotgun pellets, police said.His friend, Awae Jehnae, 25, said Marokasi was ridding pillion on his motorbike. They were returning from visiting a friend in Narathiwat's Muang district when the two gunmen, who were waiting on the side of a road behind a wooded area, fired shots at them, knocking the victim off the motorbike. In Sukirin district, a gunman walked into the living room of Wae-Isma-ae Wae-daloh, 29, and shot him dead at close range. His wife and children, who were watching television with him, escaped unharmed, according to police. Police found three shotgun shells at the crime scene. In Yala's Muang district in the compound of the Ninth Police Region's training centre, Pol Sgt Panyapen Ketkaeo was inside her pickup truck when a three-kilo bomb hidden underneath the vehicle exploded just as she reached her work. Panyapen escaped unharmed. Meanwhile, Yala's Governor Thira Mintharasak passed out a bilingual handbook on "Facts about Islam that Need to be Revealed". The contents appeared to be another attempt by state officials to discredit the insurgents and distance the militants from exploiting Islamic symbolism in their campaign against the government. Thira said Islamic scholars and Muslims leaders have approved the book but did not single out any individuals or organisations. The handbook talked about an Islamic concept of jihad, equating it to a "struggle for a cause" that is justifiable in cases when Islam is violated. The book also called for Muslims to listen and respect the wishes of their parents, and talked about the bathing rituals of Muslims, which is sometimes exempted in cases where the individual died while carrying out "a religious duty". Meanwhile, deputy abbot of Pattani's famous Chang Hai Temple, Pra Maha Charat Uchu-jaro, urged local Buddhists to remain true to the principle of Buddhism and not be persuaded by the lure of supernatural powers in these times of trouble. A growing number of local residents have purchased talismans because of their "protective powers". In a related development, Pradit Rasithanond, a senior official from the Education Ministry in Hat Yai, said teachers from the three provinces will meet from April 10-11 in Songkhla to discuss ways of improving security in the coming school year. Pradit said the past three years had seen more than 60 education personnel killed in the restive region.
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