Narathiwat bomb hurts 6 rangers

Six paramilitary rangers travelling in an armoured patrol vehicle were slightly injured by a bomb explosion on a road in Narathiwat’s Cho Airong district on Friday morning, police said.

The bomb went off on a local road in Ban Aipayae of Cho Airong district about 8am.

Deputy Narathiwat police chief Pol Col Manas Sigsamat, who led a team of reinforcements and bomb disposal  experts to the scene, said the explosion left a crater two metres deep and three metres wide in the road. The armoured vehicle was lifted into the air by the blast, and its rear wheels fell into the crater, stranding the vehicle.

The injured rangers were named as:1. Sgt Abdulrohim Yama, leader of the patrol team2. Ranger Tangpong Phapan3. Somchai Watwongpan4. Ranger Sornchai Chandaeng5. Ranger Chuwit Chanthip, and 6. Ranger Amornsak Kwanruan

Sgt Abdulrohim told police that he was leading the rangers patrol on the road in the armoured car when a bomb estimated to contain 50kg of explosive contained inside a cooking gas cylinder and buried under the road surface was detonated.

The attackers hiding in roadside forest then opened fire at the rangers. Sgt Abdulrohim had ordered his teammates to crawl out of the armoured car and fire back, while radioing for reinforcements from police and soldiers in Cho Airong.

The attackers fled the scene after about a 15-minute fight, he added.

Police blamed separatist militants for the attack.

Education Minister Pongthep Thep Kanchana said on Friday that the prime minister, who had visited the deep South on Thursday, had directed security units there to come up with more stringent security measures for  government teachers, who have closed schools in fear of their lives and demanded better protection.

The teachers will be provided with protection from their residences until they arrive at their schools, particularly those in risk areas, he said.

Mr Pongthep said he expected teachers would feel reassured and reopen all state schools in the southernmost provinces on Monday.

Schools in the far South have been closed since Wednesday, after several teachers were killed in recent attacks.

The minister said a committee had been set up to consider providing fair and just compensation for teachers killed or injured in the South. A decision was expected within a month.

Share your thoughts

Discussion 1 : 14/12/2012 at 08:16 PM
phetpeter: If all counter ambush steps are taken no patrols will never leave the base. And it will be a huge overhead for a simple patrol involving hundreds of people which means that for small bases there will be no patrolling = enemy get total dominance.. The whole point with armored vehicles is that it offer protection. Much, much more important is the response after an attack. Sealing of an large area around the ambush point and put sniffer dogs in action. There is much work do be done. The only thing I have done different is to stay in the vehicle as long as possible and use the firring ports to return fire.
Discussion 2 : 14/12/2012 at 06:34 PM
One vehicle patrol! 15 min firefight! There is nothing to add except the training officers and commanders who send this men out on such patrols should be ashamed! Thank goodness it was an armoured, or there would have been 6 more families without tonight! ow did the insurgents know which road and when! Did they sit there for days or is this another reqular route? If a reqular route then covert patrols should be done, infared scanning by air etc. etc.. Air photos to check for road changes, Helicopter patrols ready to attend areas on first contact and two vehicle patrols.

Back to top

More From Bangkokpost.com