Pattani, Thailand — Authorities said Wednesday that explosions and fires ripped through at least 17 locations in southern Thailand, in what appeared to be multiple coordinated attacks that injured seven people.
According to police and military statements, the bombings and arson attacks occurred after midnight and targeted convenience stores and a gas station in three provinces, injuring at least seven people lightly.
So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The Thai government has been fighting shadowy groups seeking independence for the predominantly Muslim provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, and parts of Songkhla in southern Thailand along the Malaysian border for decades.
On August 17, convenience stores were damaged in Cho-airong district, Narathiwat province, southern Thailand.
According to the Deep South Watch group, which monitors the violence, over 7,300 people have been killed in the conflict since 2004.
Peace talks, which began in 2013, have been repeatedly disrupted.
The attacks on Wednesday came after the Thai government resumed talks with the main insurgent group, the Barisan Revolusi Nasional, earlier this year after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
The Patani United Liberation Organization (PULO), which was excluded from the most recent round of talks, carried out bombings during Ramadan, claiming that the dialogue is not inclusive.
The government has stated that it is willing to meet with all groups.
Kasturi Makhota, the organization’s leader, told Reuters that the attacks on Wednesday had “nothing to do with PULO.”
Source: Reuters
