Published on July 14, 2006 - An explosion rocked the restive South yesterday, killing a soldier and leaving nine others injured in Narathiwat's Waeng district.

The bomb, hidden in a motorbike, was detonated by a mobile phone as Private Suphakit Thongvisuth, 22, and his colleagues stood guard at a market.

The blast, at about 9am, killed Suphakit instantly and wounded seven security officials. Two civilians shopping at the market were also hurt.

Four motorbikes belonging to the security officials were damaged, along with a van and a car parked nearby, police said.

In neighbouring Yala province, another bomb went off beside a road, injuring a policeman travelling with colleagues to provide security for teachers in Yaha district.

The bomb exploded when Police Lance Corporal Chakraphong Kwankeow got out of his car to inspect a lemon grass tree by the road. He sustai ned minor injuries to his right hand.

Nobody claimed responsibility for the incidents but the government believed insurgents were behind the attacks.

Meanwhile, caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Wanasatidya urged his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak at a meeting on border cooperation yesterday to monitor the movement of any rebels found south of the border.

A spate of violence has rocked the deep South since the beginning of 2004 and taken more than 1,300 lives.

The Nation
Narathiwat