Five villagers were shot dead in Thailand's troubled south, police said today, the latest in a series of deadly attacks blamed on separatist rebels in the region bordering Malaysia.
Last night, at least five gunmen emerged from a pickup truck and opened fire on villagers and fruit sellers standing on the roadside in Pattani province, killing four men and a woman, Police Lieutenant Wallop Jumnong-asa said.
The assailants burnt a pickup truck belonging to one of the victims before fleeing.
Three of the victims were Muslims and two Buddhists, Wallop said. Three other people were wounded including a 10-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy.
More than 4,100 people have been killed in over six years of unrest as ethnic Malay Muslims fight for autonomy in a region that was annexed by predominantly Buddhist Thailand a century ago.
Buddhists represent about 15 percent of the population in the region. Muslims there have long complained of discrimination by the central government and abuse by local security forces.
No credible group has claimed responsibility for the violence or announced any demands. A combined police and military security force of around 60,000 has failed to make any inroads in quelling the unrest in the rubber-producing region.
Reuters