Snippets

Yaowapa, daughter fly to Singapore

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's younger sisters Yingluck Shinawatra, Yaowapa Wongsawat, and her daughter flew to Singapore after the red-shirt protest in Bangkok fizzled out yesterday.

Yaowapa and Pheu Thai MP Chinnicha Wongsawat departed Chiang Mai International Airport at 11.30am on Silk Air flight MI701 and arrived in Singapore at 3.17pm local time.

Thaksin's ex-wife, Pojaman Damapong, and their three children have already left the country. They went abroad before the red-shirted protesters rioted and caused unrest in inner Bangkok.

Thaksin also remains out of the country.

52 buses seized by red shirts during riots

At least 52 public buses were seized by the red shirts during their rampage against the government, the city bus operator said yesterday.

Companies holding concessions from the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) reportedly lost 19 buses, said director Pinet Puapattanakul.

Of the BMTA's 33 buses taken over by the protesters, only 14 have been returned, while three were destroyed by fire and several damaged, he said.

The BMTA started running buses on their regular schedule again at 5am yesterday, but some routes were changed to take detours or were shortened, he said.

Bangkok Muslims petition Dubai emir

A Muslim neighbourhood in Bangkok plans to ask Dubai to withdraw the welcome mat for fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra, saying he is the leader of the red-shirt protesters who instigated violence in Thailand.

"We will submit a petition to the emir of Dubai through the UAE ambassador to Thailand, requesting that the emir not allow Thaksin to enter the country and use it as a springboard to attack Thailand," community leader Manit Saengthong said yesterday.

The Darrulaman Mosque community opposed the violence wreaked by the red shirts during the past days. Some of them intruded into the mosque and destroyed property, he said.

The request will also be addressed to other Muslim countries, he said.

Thaksin is known for his close ties with businessmen in Dubai. The ousted prime minister usually talks to the media while staying there.

Three charged over plot to torch Silom

Three men were arrested yesterday on suspicion of planning to set fire to the CP Building and Bangkok Bank branch in the Silom area on Monday night.

Pornchai Sorawit, 52, Suriya Phongern, 54, and Sakan Saengfeung, 55, were presented at a police press conference that was broadcast live. They were initially charged with conspiring to commit arson and possessing and carrying firearms and ammunition in public without a permit.

Following a tip-off from an informant that he would meet with his accomplices at the Chong Nonsi Skytrain station before carrying out the mission, police found the three in a pickup with a Buri Ram licence plate. Police also seized 46 Molotov cocktails, a 20-litre petrol tank, four guns, 77 bullets, a pocket-knife, some mechanic's tools and six cellphones.

While two suspects denied any offence, one reportedly confessed that the assignment would be carried out for a total payment of Bt5,000, of which about Bt2,000 was already given to the informant and the remaining Bt3,000 would be coming after the job was accomplished. - The Nation