CHIANG MAI

Security tightened ahead of PM's visit following terrorism reports

BANGKOK: -- Security in the northern province of Chiang Mai has been beefed up following reports of possible terrorism activities but the US Consulate General in there has not yet asked for more security, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said Tuesday.

newsjsYingluck, who is scheduled to travel to the province on Friday said she is not worried, as security authorities had already taken extra safety measures.

On Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung claimed he’d had a "sniff" of terrorism-related activities in Chiang Mai.

He said police in the region had already been assigned to reinforce security at the US Consulate General in the province.

-- The Nation 2013-02-12

I smell terrorism-related works in Chiang Mai : Chalerm

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung on Tuesday claimed he’d had a "sniff" of terrorism-related activities in Chiang Mai.

He said police in the region had already been assigned to reinforce security at the US Consulate General in the province.

-- The Nation 2013-02-12

Thailand says al-Qaida eyes attack on US consulate

BANGKOK: -- Thai authorities say they have tightened security measures at the U.S. Consulate in the northern province of Chiang Mai following reports that it was a possible target of attack from al-Qaida and Salafist terrorist groups this month.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said Tuesday she has ordered security agencies to add more forces to provide safety at the facility.

Deputy Premier Chalerm Yubumrung refused to give details about the threats, but said the reinforced measures will continue until the end of the Cobra Gold multinational military exercises on Sunday.

The United States is among the seven nations participating in the drill taking place in Chiang Mai, 570 kilometers (350 miles) north of Bangkok.

U.S. Embassy spokesman Walter Braunohler in Bangkok said precautions will be taken to protect U.S. facilities.

-- Agencies 2013-02-12

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung on Tuesday claimed he’d had a "sniff" of terrorism-related activities in Chiang Mai.

WOW have the red mob thugs turned against Yingluck?

Edited February 12, 201313 yr by Pimay1

Deputy Prime Minister Pheu Thai Party MP Police Captain Dr. Chalerm announced that the Al-Qaeda terrorist attack was codenamed Billiard Ball and would involve an attack on the U.S. Consulate from three sides and that the attack would include small arms, grenade launchers, and C-4 explosives.

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Deputy PM Chalerm tightens security at US Consulate-General in Chiang Mai, admits US Consulate-General is under Al-Qaeda threat /MCOT

PM Yingluck better be careful. There are lots of 'small pebbles' throwing protesters along the route as a former PM noticed :-)

Deputy PM Chalerm tightens security at US Consulate-General in Chiang Mai, admits US Consulate-General is under Al-Qaeda threat /MCOT

With this extra stress on Chalerm this will require at least two more liters of ear medication per day.Making decisions like this really puts a strain on the inner ear.

Edited February 12, 201313 yr by Pimay1

Deputy Prime Minister Pheu Thai Party MP Police Captain Dr. Chalerm announced that the Al-Qaeda terrorist attack was codenamed Billiard Ball and would involve an attack on the U.S. Consulate from three sides and that the attack would include small arms, grenade launchers, and C-4 explosives.

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You seem very informed - would it hurt you to provide a source?

PM Yingluck better be careful. There are lots of 'small pebbles' throwing protesters along the route as a former PM noticed :-)

Lucky he survived the way I heard it, .

Deputy PM Chalerm tightens security at US Consulate-General in Chiang Mai, admits US Consulate-General is under Al-Qaeda threat /MCOT

With this extra stress on Chalerm this will require at least two more liters of ear medication per day.Making decisions like this really puts a strain on the inner ear.

It would appear that he has now taken to snorting terror as a supplement to the ear medication.

PM Yingluck better be careful. There are lots of 'small pebbles' throwing protesters along the route as a former PM noticed :-)

Lucky he survived the way I heard it, .

That's beside the point. Prevention is all, ask Dept. PM Pol. Captain Chalerm

Heightened security to stop Al-Qaeda terrorists' Operation Billiard Ball at Chiang Mai's U.S. Consulate

Matichon news - February 12, 2013:

http://www.matichon....atid=&subcatid=

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Edited February 12, 201313 yr by Buchholz

Look on the bright side, at least he didn't slur his words

Thailand warns of possible threat to US consulate

BANGKOK, Feb 12, 2013 (AFP) - Thailand said Tuesday that it had tightened security around the US consulate in the northern city of Chiang Mai in response to warnings of a possible terrorist threat.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said she had "instructed security officials to step up security protection" at the diplomatic facility.

"The US embassy did not make any special request but we have to be vigilant and cannot be reckless," she told reporters.

A Thai senior intelligence official who did not want to be named said the government had received information late last week about a possible threat.

"We have learned that Al-Qaeda linked Salafists (ultra-orthodox Islamists) may be planning an attack on the US consulate in Chiang Mai," he told AFP.

"It's difficult to find them because there are a lot of tourists in Chiang Mai and also it's hard for them to find weapons to mount an attack," he said.

The heightened security comes as Thailand and the United States stage 11 days of annual joint military exercises known as Cobra Gold.

A spokesman for the US embassy in Bangkok, Walter Braunohler, declined to comment on the reported threat but said the consulate in Chiang Mai was open as usual.

"We continue to take every precaution necessary," he added.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2013-02-12

Deputy Prime Minister Pheu Thai Party MP Police Captain Dr. Chalerm announced that the Al-Qaeda terrorist attack was codenamed Billiard Ball and would involve an attack on the U.S. Consulate from three sides and that the attack would include small arms, grenade launchers, and C-4 explosives.

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"small arms, grenade launchers, and C-4 explosives"

Beware of Terrorists disquised as Red Shirts?

good ole sniffer dog on the job....

There's always an "attack" when the US is performing drills somewhere in the area. It provides more pics and video for the media coverup.

or

Nobody was there to stop it because everybody was participating in the drill and nobody knew if it was real or part of the production.

Surprised he didn't say that he had his 'ear to the ground'

Ask Panthongtae.

He'll know.

Heightened security to stop Al-Qaeda terrorists' Operation Billiard Ball at Chiang Mai's U.S. Consulate

Matichon news - February 12, 2013:

http://www.matichon....atid=&subcatid=

Thailand said Tuesday that it had tightened security around the US consulate in the northern city of Chiang Mai in response to warnings of a possible terrorist threat.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said she had "instructed security officials to step up security protection" at the diplomatic facility.

"The US embassy did not make any special request but we have to be vigilant and cannot be reckless," she told reporters.

Job well done, Yingluck.

Nothing can get through that stepped up, tightened, vigilant security.

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So the "threat" of terrorism in the North is in equally opposite proportion to acted out terrorism in the South?

Edited February 12, 201313 yr by cup-O-coffee

BANGKOK, 7 December 2012 (NNT) -

Chalerm : Thailand is not terrorism land

Deputy Prime Minister Police Captain Chalerm Yubamrung has affirmed yesterday that Thailand is not a country of terrorism after it was ranked eighth in the global terrorism index by the Institute for Economics and Peace.

Police Captain Chalerm downplayed the ranking by the US agency and attributed the misunderstanding to recent political protests in the country. He expressed confidence towards the operation of immigration police, the special branch police and other security units.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the US has once believed that the terrorist group Hezbollah came to Thailand, but the issue was later proven false.

Police Captain Chalerm also expressed confidence that Thailand is not terrorism-prone as it is a Buddhist country and is not aligned with any major power bloc. He said the unrest in the south is deemed as being instigated by insurgents and separatists, not an act of terrorism.

The Deputy Prime Minister then pointed out that media reports which cover the incidents in the Deep South has been causing fears among the public while the local people do not share the same level of panic.

He however noted that he has been working closely with the authorities and is aware of the situation in the region. By RADIO THAILAND & INSIGHT INFO

http://thainews.prd.go.th/centerweb/newsen/NewsDetail?NT01_NewsID=WNPOL5512070010004

I wonder, wouldn't the Americans know of this before Chalerms gets a wiff? Chalerm is trolling maybe! Why not the embassy in Bangkok? Or is it that the crab is visiting Chang Mai and no one took any notice the last time they rolled out the possible assassination attempt story? Now Yingluck is the target of al Queada???

That US consulate is an accident waiting to happen. Security is very poor which makes it a soft and very opportunistic target for terrorists.

Why bother with the consulate; go to the Thai Immigration office any day and it is a target-rich environment, totally unprotected.

Note to self... stop wearing OEF Iraq & Afghanistan t-shirts when out & about...

If he just happens to be round the corner, he can make the arrests himself.

Now airplanes landed in Chiang Mai airport every 10 minutes. I thought something was wrong. Especially check the internet now and found the message.

Could it be he got the sniff of something strange when he had his hand out like that?