More suspects detained on Narathiwat's fatal bomb attack

More than 200 personnel in a combined military and police action searched an unnamed village in Sungai Kolok, apprehending a man with two pistols, 181 rounds of ammunition, a large amount of US currency, five cell phones, five bankaccount books, four motorcycles and a pickup.

The arrested man told authorities both the weapons and the dollars belonged to someone else. A 30-year-old homeowner was arrested, too. A pistol, 26 cartridges, Bt76,000 cash and a counterfeit motorcycle registration plate were seized.

In Thursday night's attack, a small bomb exploded first, injuring no one, but served to attract police, local officials, the news media and curious bystanders. When a crowd had gathered, a larger bomb was exploded by remote control near Narathiwat's Sungai Kolok district police headquarters, killing two and wounding 35 others.

The bomb in the motorcycle, which was parked at a restaurant, exploded at about 9.30pm Thursday and the car bomb about 20 minutes later.

Senior army officials including LtGeneral Viroj Buacharoon, commander of the Fourth Army Region which is responsible for security in the South, early yesterday agreed soldiers in the area would tighten security, especially in residential and risk-prone areas.

Maj Gen Theerachai Nakvanich, commanding the Narathiwat Task Force, said all suspects were detained for interrogation and that the authorities now knew the origin of the bombladen motorcycle and car.

Intelligence officers have stepped up their activities in three Narathiwat districts to monitor movements of the insurgents, Theerachai said.