Highway battle

One day after the government signalled its readiness to get tough and the red protesters suffered a rare defeat in Pathum Thani, a joint force of soldiers and police tried to stop a caravan of red-shirt protesters on their way to the same province for a new showdown.

But this time clashes occurred in the Don Muang area and the National Memorial, both located on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road.

The soldier was killed after being shot in his head but it was unclear yesterday who was responsible for the death. The CNN News website reported that the soldier was accidentally killed by fire from security forces. But there was no response from the authorities.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's Erawan emergency centre identified the dead soldier as Private Narongrit Sara from the Ninth Infantry Division in Kanchanaburi. Of the 18 injured, three people were in serious condition; 16 of them are civilians and two soldiers, according to the centre.

A video clip circulated on the Internet yesterday showed a motorcycle-riding soldier falling down after he appeared to be shot. Security forces fired on troops riding towards them on motorbikes in what appeared to be an accident, The Associated Press reported. At least four motorbikes crashed and one soldier was carried away on a stretcher, bleeding profusely from the head. Several others from the group threw their hands in the air.

The clashes began in the Don Muang area at about 1.30pm and then at the National Memorial several kilometres away shortly before 3pm.

The red shirts' caravan, consisting of some 2,000 people, left their main protest site at the Rajprasong intersection at around 10.30am to head for the Thai Market in Pathum Thani. The march, led by wanted leader Kwanchai Praipana, was aimed at showing moral support to the 11 red-shirt protesters arrested for blocking traffic near the market on Monday.

The security forces used road barriers, razor wires and rubber bullets to block the protesters. Riot squads fired in the air to push back the protesters as several of the red shirts hurled stones and fired slingshots at the security forces. Some of the protesters were found to be carrying guns.

The clash was interrupted by heavy rains, which caused the protesters to disperse. A large group of red shirts tried to regroup and took over a petrol station near the airport. The stand-off ended shortly before 3.30pm.

Traffic on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road suffered severe congestion as parts of the road, as well as the elevated Don Muang tollway above it, were closed during the clashes.

Police later confiscated 63 M-79 grenade launchers from a motorcycle during a search on Vibhavadi Rangsit.

Police stopped a motorcycle at a checkpoint set up after the red shirts clashed with troops on the road. The rider of the vehicle stopped as ordered but managed to run away, according to Woraphong Chewpreecha, assistant to the National Police chief.

Police then searched the vehicle and confiscated 63 M-79 grenade launchers from the vehicle.

Also found were documents of Pol Sergeant Pratya Maneekote of Pathum Thani's Kukot district.

Police could not say whether the rider was the sergeant.

The authorities decided to halt the operation amid fears of more lathe weapons being brought to the scene, military spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.

The Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation set up checkpoints yesterday in areas surrounding Rajprasong to prevent protesters from bringing weapons into the site.

Kwanchai, who led the caravan, disappeared during the melee and was rumoured to have been arrested. However, shortly after 5pm, he reappeared at the Rajprasong protest site, where he told the protesters how he had escaped.

A red-shirt leader, weng Tojirakarn, said that a group of protesters today would leave the Rajprasong protest site to the office of the European Union to report the facts about what had happened.

Meanwhile, Dr Tul Sithisomwong, a leader of the pro-government multicoloured group, announced yesterday that his group would suspend its daily gathering at the Victory Monument indefinitely in the interests of its members' safety.

However, the "yellow shirt" People's Alliance for Democracy will go ahead with its plan to march to the 11th Infantry Regiment and 40 military camps throughout the country to submit the PAD's written request for the military to deal with the country's security threats.

In a related development, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij yesterday evening attended the funeral of Thanyanant Thaebthong, who was killed in a grenade attack in the Silom area last Thursday night. The ceremony was organised at the Lum Charoen Sattha Temple in Bang Kholaem district.

The prime minister gave the victim's family Bt400,000 compensation from the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security.

Many of the people present at the funeral shouted "Fight, fight, prime minister" to offer him moral support.

Earlier in the day, Abhisit made a surprise appearance at Government House - after his long absence as he was now working from the 11th Infantry Regiment in the Bang Khen area. The prime minister met with visiting Timor Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta.