2 killed, 16 injured in Narathiwat attack

Two members of the Sukhirin Volunteer Defence Corps were killed and 16 others injured in an attack in Narathiwat province, southern Thailand, on the afternoon of September 18. The incident occurred as the group was returning to their camp in Sukhirin district after attending a boat race at the "Narathiwat Local Products Fair" in the city district. At approximately 2:52 p.m., Pol. Col. Praphot Lomkhet, superintendent of Sukhirin police station, received a report of a bomb and gunfire attack on a Volunteer Defence Corps team traveling in a six-wheel truck in Ban Bulu-ya-ing, Rom Sai subdistrict. He promptly went to the scene with Sukhirn District Chief Pichit Rungprasert, accompanied by additional police and soldiers. Upon arrival, they discovered the truck overturned on the road with several victims trapped inside. Rescuers extricated them and transported them to Sukhirin Hospital for treatment. Approximately 20 meters away, a bomb crater, about two meters deep and three meters wide, was found. Debris from an improvised explosive device, constructed from a 50-kg cooking gas cylinder, was scattered across the road and into the dense roadside vegetation. No detonator was found at the site. Of the 16 defence corps volunteers injured, five are in critical condition. An investigation revealed that prior to the incident, the defence corps team was returning to their base after attending a boat race. Upon reaching the location, an unknown number of assailants, positioned in the dense roadside vegetation, detonated an explosive device they had planted beneath the road surface. The force of the blast caused the vehicle to overturn. Subsequently, insurgents opened fire, prompting the defence corps team to return fire with their service weapons. The attackers then utilized their familiarity with the terrain to escape. Authorities believe this attack is a retaliatory act after security forces killed two of the insurgents’ bomb-making specialists on the Tawe Mountain Range on September 9. This and Front Page: The scene of the deadly attack in Narathiwat province killing two defence corps volunteers and injuring 16 others. Photos – Amarin TV