Yala - A school in Yala's Bannang Sata district was closed as authorities hunted for insurgents who planted a bomb nearby, killing one paramilitary official and injuring three others yesterday morning.
The bomb attack took place at 8am on the road 300 metres from Ban Bacho School, injuring four paramilitary officials, one fatally.
Corporal Sakkarin Maneeprawat, 26, was pronounced dead on reaching hospital. Forensic officials suspect the bomb weighing about 3-5 kilograms was placed in a metal box and detonated by cellphone.
The bomb went off when |the eight-strong paramilitary| unit patrolling the area on foot to provide security to local teachers passed by.
Bannang Sata district chief Methree Kanchanapangkha said that following the bomb attack, Ban Bacho School was temporarily closed for the day to allow security officials to carry out investigations.
The schoolteachers' to-and-from-home routes must be secured as the Malayu-Pattani National Day approaches. Southern insurgents have given importance to the day and increased attacks that particularly targeted teachers and state officials, he said.
Meanwhile, Anwa Tosae, a 36-year-old villager of Ban Hutae Majae in Pattani's Sai Buri district, was shot dead by two men on a motorcycle on Monday night.
The victim was riding his motorcycle back home from a football field. Police are unclear whether the killing was due to a personal conflict or a part of the ongoing violence in the region.