Roadside blast hurts four troops on patrol

Four soldiers on patrol duty were wounded when a roadside bomb went off yesterday morning in Yala’s Muang district, police said.

Pol Col Jamlong Suwaluck, superintendent of Muang Yala police station, said yesterday Sgt Veera Meerit, 28, Pvt Apichart Rakdee, 23, Pvt Kraisorn Ruangkit, 23 and Pvt Damrong Pilapan, 23, all attached to the Yala special task force, sustained injuries but were conscious after the blast.

They were taken by rescuers to a nearby hospital for treatment, he added.

The soldiers were patrolling in tambon Satengnok on two motorcycles when the bomb exploded, Pol Col Jamlong said.

Military officers had been on patrol throughout the town to ensure security. The Red Cross fair and a ceremony to celebrate the city pillar shrine in Yala are planned between Thursday and June 4.

Police said investigators who inspected the scene found the remains of what appeared to be a 10kg homemade bomb.

The bomb blast ripped a hole 1.5 metres by 1m on the nearby road.

Debris including shattered bits of a circuit board and steel fragments were collected by an explosive ordnance disposal unit for further examination, police said.

Pol Col Jamlong said police believe the attackers detonated the bomb hidden in a roadside bush when authorities were passing by.

The attack was believed to be the work of a militant group active the area headed by Roki Dolloh, he added.

In Narathiwat, meanwhile, authorities seized an M16 rifle hidden under a tree close to a village in Rueso district yesterday, a senior military officer said.

Col Pasit Chanlekha, chief of the 46th para-ranger unit, said a combined team of military officers attached to the 46th military base and Rueso police had inspected Bakong Village in Moo 6 in Rueso district after being alerted to a suspicious object by a villager around 9.30am.

The villager told police an object was suspected to be buried under the tree, just 200 metres way from the street to the village, he added. Col Pasit said, authorities found an “X” mark on the tree.

A metal detector was used to detect an object under the ground, he added. Digging into the ground, authorities discovered the M16 rifle inside a black plastic bag, Col Pasit said.

Forensic science officers were checking fingerprints on the weapon.

Col Pasit said authorities are looking into whether the gun was among those stolen from the Krom Luang Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Military Camp in Cho Airong district on Jan 4, 2004 or from the Phra Ong Dam military base in Rangae district on Jan 21, 2001.