Extremists may be planning to target westerners in Thailand's southern border provinces

[george]

Extremists may be planning to target westerners in Thailand's southern border provinces

Warning from Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Smartraveller advisory service

The following Travel Advice has changed or been added since our last update ( 9 Apr 2014 11:18:17 EST):

* Thailand
http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/Thailand

Current Advice Level: "High degree of caution"
Change Summary:

It contains new information in the Summary and under Safety and security: Terrorism (reporting indicates that extremists may be planning to target westerners in the southern border provinces). Australians should continue to avoid all protest sites and surrounding areas, political rallies, marches and processions, political events (including polling stations when elections are rescheduled) and large-scale public gatherings due to the risk of further violence. We advise Australians to exercise a high degree of caution in Thailand overall due to the possibility of civil unrest and the threat of terrorist attack.

Source: http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/Thailand


-- 2014-04-10

[Ulysses G.]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

[Thai at Heart]

Well that puts a bit of a dampener on Songkran.

Large public gatherings....

[daoyai]

An odd worning seemingly mixing the political conflicts in BKK and some new danger posed by "etremests" in the south.

[phuketsub]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

[Tatsujin]

Has some agency received information about westerners actually specifically being targeted then?

[Thai at Heart]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

Why last to know? You think the USA, Britain and Oz might not share Intel. In some ways, the Thais would be likely to be the last to know, particularly if any intelligence was gained internationally.

Let's see if the USA upgrades their warnings.

[lopburi3]

The warnings are part of the normal country warning and specific language is

• We strongly advise you not to travel at this time to the southern provinces of Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and Songkhla or overland to and from the Malaysian border through these provinces due to high levels of ongoing violence in these areas, including terrorist attacks and bombings that result in deaths and injuries on an almost daily basis.
• Reporting indicates that extremists may be planning to target westerners in the southern border provinces.

[dru2]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Almost certainly neither.

The southern Thai Muslims looking for greater autonomy or secession are by and large a nationalist political movement, not religious extremists - have been for years.

"Suthep's Yellowshirt Crew" - your words - are neither Muslim, nor secessionist, nor anti Western. Moreover they have nothing to do with the Far South.

Much more likely the Australians have picked up chatter about al-Qaeda types hiding or based in the southern provinces - not Thai Muslims but Arabs, South Asians or Pakistanis. Some of these extremists have been using Cambodia as a hiding place, and Thailand is almost as easy to hide in, especially if you're a foreign Muslim in the deep south.

[WoopyDoo]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

They did actually stress the southern regions and Thailand overall.

Read it again.

[dru2]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

Why last to know? You think the USA, Britain and Oz might not share Intel. In some ways, the Thais would be likely to be the last to know, particularly if any intelligence was gained internationally.

Let's see if the USA upgrades their warnings.

Your are right. The USA, Canada,UK,Australia and New Zealand have been closely cooperating through the ECHELON shared intelligence service - the best in the world - since WWII. It's also known as 'Five Eyes'. Check it out on Wikipedia.

[Luk Mhee]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Yep! its time for the convicts to pack up and go home.

[Crushdepth]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

Very true. Three or four hundred people are going to get massacred on the roads next week - and not by terrorists.

[goldmonky]

I would say westerners have more chance of being involved in a traffic accident than being bombed or shot by extremists

[Dancealot]

I say: Thanks for the warning!

[chainarong]

I think the crux to this warning is for the whole of Thailand , this type of warning has been out since the new year , particularly BKK , as it was thought that terrorists might size the opportunity with the protesters movement, those bombs found last month, there was no reports from the Thai police as to their origin, take caution. LOS

[ubonrthai]

What information is there that they may targeting foreigners? Any other sources reporting this? Are they just saying this because of the bombing spree a few days ago? That was targeting Thai-Chinese businesses as they have since the conflict began.

[chainarong]

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The warnings are part of the normal country warning and specific language is

• We strongly advise you not to travel at this time to the southern provinces of Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and Songkhla or overland to and from the Malaysian border through these provinces due to high levels of ongoing violence in these areas, including terrorist attacks and bombings that result in deaths and injuries on an almost daily basis.
• Reporting indicates that extremists may be planning to target westerners in the southern border provinces.

DEFAT Australia has had warning out for Thailand and Indonesia for years ,nothing new ,Thailand has been elevated , the AFP are worried about terrorist attacks and rightly so , hence the elevated warning.

[terryp]

amazing how so many TV members are so tough and sad to say stupid .....bottom line anyone who thinks Thailand is safe for Forigners ANYWHERE is a fool and they deserve all that they are mindnumbingly ignorant to......luck can run out on any hour anywhere apparently it just happens to others? and Never in Thailand to Expats

[chooka]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

Are you saying that Australia is a backwoods country run by dimwits with spears and bow and arrows. Actually Australia does have an intelligence agency and hey we even got electricity now and running water.

[zydeco]

I would say westerners have more chance of being involved in a traffic accident than being bombed or shot by extremists

But it is an interesting new factor. And all these factors eventually add up, along with the traffic accidents, the robberies, rapes, murder for hires, assaults, hotel poisonings, food poisonings, etc. And Thailand becomes a very, very dangerous place.

[WhizBang]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Yep! its time for the convicts to pack up and go home.

Agree wholeheartedly. It IS time for Yingluck and the PTP to pack up and go to jail.

[Thai at Heart]

I would say westerners have more chance of being involved in a traffic accident than being bombed or shot by extremists

But it is an interesting new factor. And all these factors eventually add up, along with the traffic accidents, the robberies, rapes, murder for hires, assaults, hotel poisonings, food poisonings, etc. And Thailand becomes a very, very dangerous place.

This warning might effect travel insurance.

If it does, it is quite serious economically and might cause other embassies to follow suit.

[diehard60]

An odd worning seemingly mixing the political conflicts in BKK and some new danger posed by "etremests" in the south.

Not much difference suthep's thugs and extremists

[diehard60]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Yep! its time for the convicts to pack up and go home.

Agree wholeheartedly. It IS time for Yingluck and the PTP to pack up and go to jail.

you got that all wrong. You mean suthep and his thugs from the south.

[Torrens54]

Well that puts a bit of a dampener on Songkran.

Large public gatherings....

Songkran could prove to be a bit of a "Wash Out."

[diehard60]

so wronn

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Almost certainly neither.

The southern Thai Muslims looking for greater autonomy or secession are by and large a nationalist political movement, not religious extremists - have been for years.

"Suthep's Yellowshirt Crew" - your words - are neither Muslim, nor secessionist, nor anti Western. Moreover they have nothing to do with the Far South.

Much more likely the Australians have picked up chatter about al-Qaeda types hiding or based in the southern provinces - not Thai Muslims but Arabs, South Asians or Pakistanis. Some of these extremists have been using Cambodia as a hiding place, and Thailand is almost as easy to hide in, especially if you're a foreign Muslim in the deep south.

WOW wow wow you are so wrong. suthep did in fact say in one of his many ravings that he hated all foriegners. So get the facts straight please.

[nullx8]

Ate these "extremists" Muslims looking to succeed from Thailand or Suthep's yellowshirt crew?

Who said they are muslims ?

[ALLSEEINGEYE]

Shoot ALL extremists!!!!

[Mudcrab]

This displays a real lack of knowledge of the situation on the ground.

The real danger will come from Songkran, not BRN, RKK and that lot...they have never targetted Western tourists in the past and, had they recently changed strategies, I bet the Aussie govt would be the last to know...

Are you saying that Australia is a backwoods country run by dimwits with spears and bow and arrows. Actually Australia does have an intelligence agency and hey we even got electricity now and running water.

Yeeehaaw, gonna get me one of them new fangled indoor outhouses soon!!!!!