NARATHIWAT, THAILAND – Seven small bombs exploded overnight in Narathiwat province without causing injuries, in what authorities viewed as a coordinated attempt by suspected insurgents to stir unrest ahead of Ramadan.
Multiple blasts in Yi-ngo district
The first device detonated at about 11 p.m. in a rubbish bin outside a motorcycle repair shop near Yi-Ngo Chaloem Phrakiat Hospital in Moo 7, Yi-ngo district. Several parked motorcycles were damaged, according to Pol. Lt. Borarn Phiteenattananon, deputy chief investigator in Yi-ngo.
About an hour later, a second bomb went off roughly 300 metres from the first scene, again hidden in a rubbish bin, this time in front of the district Livestock Office. Around 2 a.m., another device exploded in a street-side rubbish bin outside a mobile phone repair shop in the same Moo 7 area.
Five crime scenes sealed off
Before dawn, two further explosions were reported in Yi-ngo, one at about 4 a.m. near a steel bridge close to a clock tower and another shortly afterwards in bushes at the edge of the town area in Yi-ngo Moo 2. Security forces cordoned off all five sites in the district and examined them on Sunday morning, and officials reported no injuries.
CCTV points to coordinated operation
During the review of surveillance cameras, investigators found footage of two people on a motorcycle placing a device in roadside bushes near the Yi-ngo exit to Highway No. 42, Pol. Lt. Borarn said.
“The police assumed from these images that this was a coordinated operation and are working to establish the identity of the suspects.”
said Pol. Lt. Borarn Phiteenattananon, deputy chief investigator in Yi-ngo.
Further explosions in Rangae
In neighbouring Rangae district, two more explosions were recorded the same night. The first device detonated at 11:32 p.m. in a grocery store in Tanyongmat subdistrict, damaging goods on display.
The second blast occurred at about 1 a.m. in a rubbish bin opposite Primary Education Service Area Office 3, also in Tanyongmat, with no injuries reported there either. Authorities treated the locations as part of the same overnight bombing series.
Heightened patrols before Ramadan
Following the attacks, security forces stepped up their patrols and reviewed additional video footage to trace possible escape routes and supporters of the perpetrators. According to officials, the pattern of the attacks indicated that southern separatists had timed the explosions to raise tensions just before Ramadan, which was expected to begin on Wednesday, as reported by the Bangkok Post.
“The patterns of the attacks indicate that southern separatists set off the detonations in a coordinated way to deliberately fuel tensions in the region before the start of Ramadan.”
said unnamed authorities, according to the Bangkok Post.