Two militants killed in gun battle with police

Pol Major General Korkiert Wongworachart, commander of Pattani provincial police, identified the two men as Hama Mahsamae, 27, and Mahamaruding Samae, 28. He said the two refused to stop when instructed by a group of police officer patrolling in a backup truck and began to fired at the officers as they sped away. The two suspected insurgents had in their possession one AK47 and one 9mm handgun, Korkiert said.

In Narathiwat's Yingor district, two gunmen shot at closed ranger a shop owner, Wilai Lampromkoew, 55, who was attending her store at the time of the attack. Wilai suffered three shots to her body and was rushed to the nearby hospital.

The latest attacks came one day after Thailand decided to extend a state of emergency for three more months in the three southernmost provinces where more than 2,300 people have been killed since January 2004.

In Songkhla's Saba Yoi district, two school bus drivers were seriously wounded by two gunmen who came from behind on another motorbike and shot at them. The two were identified as Noree Thongkoew, 37, and Charn Pungkoew, 67.

In Chanae district, a bomb hidden in the ceiling of a public school exploded, injuring two police officers who were designated as security details for teachers at Ban Namwon Elementary School. Police said the bomb was set off remotely.

In Narathiwat's Tambon Kaluwor, police paraded seven suspects from their Monday raid on an the Islamiburapha, a traditional Islamic boarding school, following a hot pursuit of insurgents behind an explosion. The raid made off with at two handguns and one shotgun, as well as several rounds of ammunition and explosive materials and detonators.

//The Nation