Thai Bomb Theft Sparks Terror Fear

[george]

Thai police find some explosives stolen from quarry

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Thai police on Thursday found some of the explosives stolen from a quarry in southern Thailand by suspected Islamic insurgents, officials said.

"Authorities are in the process of searching the area. We still can't say how much was found, but the place where they hid it is not far from the place where it was stolen,'' police Maj. Gen. Thani Twidsri told The Associated Press.

He said he had no other details about where the cache was found.

About 1.6 tons of ammonium nitrate, 58 sticks of dynamite and 170 detonators were stolen Tuesday night from a quarry in Yala province by 10 armed men, raising fears that the explosives might be used for terrorist attacks during the April 13-15 Thai New Year holiday, known as Songkran.

Defense Minister Gen. Chetta Thanajaro told iTV television station that authorities were questioning seven people about the theft, but Thani said they were not being treated as suspects.

"The seven people may have ... given information to police, but they're not yet suspects,'' he said.

Quarrying companies are licensed to keep stocks of explosives for use in blasting rocks.

But the army on Thursday ordered rock quarries in the region to begin storing their explosives in a maximum security army camp.

Southern Thailand, the only Muslim-majority region in the predominantly Buddhist country, has been in the grip of a separatist movement for the last two years.

Since the beginning of this year, at least 58 people, mostly police and local government officials, have been killed in a series of attacks.

Muslims have long complained of discrimination in jobs and education, and say the government ignores their culture and language.

- AP 2004-04-01

[eyespan]

Why aren't the authorities getting any leads so far? these people are criminals.... not some righteous godsent freedom fighter.

You can get leads on junkies, smugglers and peddlars and you cannot find anything on a high profile "going to be 3000" strong organisation?

Shameful.

[Rhys]

With all the Psych Ops going about poorly or actually well..let us not forget the influences from the other side of the pond(s).

If it smells like Kee Kwai, chances are it is Kee Kwai...no offence to the Kwai but to Thailand's finest in uniform. Si Sue Pueda

[george]

Thai police looking for 2 Indonesians suspected of explosives heist

BANGKOK : Thai authorities are looking into several leads regarding Tuesday night's quarry raid, where armed men got away with enough explosive-making material to blow up a small town.

One of the suspects is even believed to be related to regional terror suspect Hambali.

Amidst heightened tension in Thailand's three southernmost provinces, police are looking for two Indonesians suspected of being behind the explosives heist.

Intelligence sources told Channel NewsAsia that one of the two is a bomb-maker, said to be related to regional terror suspect Hambali, who was arrested in central Thailand last year.

They also believe that the two, together with two other Thai-Muslims from Narathivas province, have fled across the border into northern Malaysia.

The culprits got away with over a tonne of ammonium nitrate, nearly 60 sticks of dynamite, and more than 180 detonators after raiding a quarry in southern Yala province.

Thai police are now questioning the two security guards on duty at the time of the raid, on the possibility that factory employees were in on the plan.

And as the search continues for missing explosives, alerts have been issued not only for the 5 southernmost provinces, but for the capital Bangkok as well.

Authorities fear the stolen ammunition could be used for a massive attack during Thailand's upcoming New Year festival, April 13-15.

Police have been instructed to keep a close eye on all Western interests, especially Jewish churches and popular tourist hang-outs.

Many Thais are keeping these alerts in mind as they plan their 3-day holiday for the Songkran festival.

"It may be dangerous in the three provinces in the south, but places like Bangkok and Chiang Mai should be safe," said one.

One cautious Thai said: "I'm planning to stay away from tourist attractions like Kao Sarn Road."

Others remain optimistic and intend to have a good time during the Songkran festival.

"Nothing will happen. We're a peaceful country and I don't think they (the militants) will target innocent bystanders," one confident Thai said.

But officials are not taking any chances.

The government has scheduled another security meeting, and not just to evaluate the situation.

Speculation is high that the Prime Minister may dismiss some high ranking officials for their inefficiency in solving the problem.

-- CNA 2004-04-02

[george]

Update, conflicting version:

Thai security chief sees no foreign link to raid

PATTANI: -- Thai authorities have found no evidence that two Indonesian militants were among the raiders who stole a large quantity of explosives in southern Thailand this week, a senior security official said on Friday.

The Bangkok Post reported on Friday one of the Indonesians involved in Tuesday's theft of ammonium nitrate from a quarry was a relative of Hambali, the suspected Jemaah Islamiah mastermind of the 2002 Bali bombings who was arrested in Thailand last year.

The newspaper, citing an unnamed intelligence source, said the group planned to bomb tourist targets in the largely Muslim south where a spate of violence began three months ago.

"I don't know who gave out this report, but my intelligence reports say we don't have any link to this," General Pallop Pinmanee, the top security official in the region, told Reuters in reference to the Indonesians and Hambali.

"So far we have a list of seven suspects and they are all Thai. They are members of this insurgency movement," Pallop said, referring to the separatists Bangkok has blamed for the violence in which 60 people have been killed since January.

The region is on full alert for bombs made from the 1.4 tonnes of stolen ammonium nitrate, which Pallop has said is enough to build a bomb capable of blowing up a town.

Authorities fear fresh attacks are planned for Thailand's new year celebrations later this month.

The Bangkok Post said a bomb expert named Rusadi Pohseng, believed to be a member of the separatist Pattani United Liberation Organisation (PULO), led Tuesday's raid.

Pallop said authorities suspect Pohseng may have been involved in the raid, but he gave no further details.

Police said on Friday that 800 kg (1,765 lb) of ammonium nitrate and dynamite found at a deserted mine on Thursday was not part of the stash stolen from the quarry. On Thursday, the Defence Ministry said it was.

"The batch of explosives and fertilizer found at the marble mine were not from the rock quarry. They were very old and abandoned," a police spokesman said.

Thai authorities believe no more than 500 separatists, galvanised partly by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, are responsible for the violence.

[taxexile]

"Nothing will happen. We're a peaceful country and I don't think they (the militants) will target innocent bystanders," one confident Thai said.

brilliant.

it is a well known fact that terrorists will only target guilty bystanders.

it is another well known fact that despite killings,bombings and kidnappings thailand is a peaceful country.

[mouse]

Isn't it amazing, in the US they empahtically state that everything happening including clogged toilets, is caused by Al Queda. Then in this area of the world they always dismiss it as local bandits. Well listen here people, I am terrorized and enough to stay away from the festivities, therefore it is TERRORISM in my mind, even if only a local brand.

[george]

Bangkok to ask KL to revoke citizenship of 30,000 Thais

A report says problems in southern Thailand are partly caused by some people holding dual nationality

BANGKOK - The Thai government will ask Kuala Lumpur to withdraw the Malaysian nationality of about 30,000 Thais holding dual citizenship, a report said yesterday, as tensions in the southern province worsened.

The Bangkok Post said the proposal was part of a government report which will soon be submitted to Parliament.

The government report says that the problems in the deep south were caused partly by some people holding both Thai and Malaysian citizenships.

The government will therefore coordinate with Malaysia through the Thai-Malaysian General Border Committee and ask it to make a survey, make a list of Thai people holding dual citizenship and withdraw their Malaysian nationality, the Post said.

The report came as Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra sought to meet Malaysian counterpart Abdullah Ahmad Badawi over 'militia training' in villages just over the border.

'Malaysian villages on the border are places for sheltering and hiding terrorists,' Mr Thaksin had said on Wednesday.

But a Malaysian minister yesterday said Mr Thaksin's claim was 'unfounded'.

'Up to now, we have not received any report about criminals entering Malaysia and the statement by Mr Thaksin is unfounded,' Deputy Internal Security Minister Noh Omar said.

Late yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Najib Tun Razak said Malaysia was ready to hold discussions with the Thai authorities on security issues in southern Thailand.

Prime Minister Abdullah was also willing to meet Mr Thaksin to discuss the matter, he said.

'We don't want to be seen as a country which is reluctant to lend full support to any of its neighbours facing security problems,' he told reporters.

Meanwhile, tensions in the southern provinces worsened as suspected Islamic insurgents shot and killed a local politician yesterday.

Mr Daoh Kareeuma, 56, an elected official of a village administration in Yala province, was ambushed by two gunmen as he arrived home after going round his village on a motorcycle, police Captain Jirasak Wichaicharoenying said.

The death raised to 59 the number of people killed this year in the almost daily cycle of violence gripping the Muslim-majority southern provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani.

The government says the culprits are Islamic separatists who have targeted policemen, village officials and others belonging to the Buddhist majority.

Also yesterday, two gunmen shot and seriously injured the husband of a woman who works in a village administration office, said a police officer.

Deputy Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh said the government would hold a meeting of security officials on Monday to prepare evidence of the insurgents' Malaysian incursions, which Mr Thaksin would present to Datuk Seri Abdullah.

Thailand had successfully dealt with a decades-old separatist insurgency in the area in the late 1980s.

But it resurfaced two years ago before gaining strength this year to pose the country's biggest domestic security challenge.

Fears of a major attack on civilian targets during the Thai festival Songkran on April 13-15 have been raised since armed raiders stole a huge quantity of explosives from a quarry in Yala on Tuesday.

Officials have ordered all 10 quarries in southern Thailand to hand their rock-blasting explosives to the army for safekeeping.

Also on Thursday, another large unprotected cache was found stored in an abandoned marble mine.

-- AP, Bernama 2004-04-03

[et33.com]

the trouble of fools

who think they are fighting for "god"

when "god" is just an excuse

to control and brainwash fools...

if they believe there is only one "god"

and that their "god" is most awesome and powerful

then why would "god" need puny humans

to fight on his behalf

sigh...

the trouble of fools...

who think they are fighting for their "god"

and this apply across the board

[george]

Exercise in PR or an act of diplomacy?

NEWS ANALYSIS BY MERGAWATI ZULFAKAR

WHEN Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra announced in Bangkok that he was coming to Malaysia to meet his counterpart over the spate of violence in southern Thailand, it came as no surprise.

In January, immediately after a series of bombings in the southern province that claimed several lives and schools were razed, Thailand despatched its Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai to Kuala Lumpur because Bangkok claimed the bandits had crossed over to Malaysia.

It was no different with last week’s bombing in Sungai Golok in which 28 people including Malaysians were injured: fingers were pointed at Malaysia again.

Perhaps the only surprise this time is that the visitor from Thailand is Thaksin himself. While he had requested a meeting with Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the manner in which he announced the date of the meeting raised eyebrows.

Malaysia, in fact, has not given any response to the Thai leader’s request.

While the meeting will eventually take place, Kuala Lumpur has every right to be unhappy with the way its northern neighbour has been shifting the blame on Malaysia every time trouble brews in southern Thailand.

Thaksin, short of not accusing Malaysia of harbouring militants, had said that they had compiled a list of suspected militants holding dual citizenship and that some of the attackers had crossed the border to Malaysia.

“It is easy for Thailand to bandy the dual citizenship issue about.

“How many people are actually holding such citizenship; how do we know that they are the ones who have perpetrated the crimes?” asked a diplomat.

After the bombing, police search for clues at the Marina Hotel in Sungai Golok.

A senior official said he failed to see the logic of linking dual citizenship to the bomb attack.

“Criminals are criminals. Why is it only through dual citizenship that it is linked to terrorism?

“That is a very convenient thing to do when you want to put the blame on some other party,” he added.

It has always been Malaysia’s policy that it does not recognise dual citizenship. Anybody found to hold dual citizenship would have his or her Malaysian citizenship annulled.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has said those involved in the bombings in Sungai Golok had not crossed into Malaysia and insisted if the Thai authorities knew their identities, they should provide accurate information.

He said the Government was ready to act not only against Malaysians but its action would have to be based on correct information provided.

The problem is, according to Malaysian officials, when Thailand provided some information in the past, it had been incomplete. When the attacks occurred in January, Thailand, it is understood, gave a list of names.

“But there is no real clarity. They just give names. Sometimes even the names are incorrect.

“If they have complete information, where are these people now, where are they staying?” asked an official.

Thaksin had said that he was asking his officials to compile a list of suspected militants holding dual citizenship and that they would have to choose which nationality to keep.

“Is he coming here to present the names? That is the nuance that we gather from the press reports.

“Until today, in our dealings with Thailand, we have yet to see any document of anybody having dual citizenship with Thailand,” said an official.

Malaysia has always treated the problem in southern Thailand as an internal problem of that country and tried to be a good neighbour when Thailand asked for assistance to trace the culprits.

As far as Malaysia is concerned, it has not found any evidence implicating any of its citizens.

It looks like Thaksin’s visit next Friday is a public relations exercise for his people rather than an act of diplomacy.

--The Star, MY 2004-04-03

[et33.com]

all emotions are forms of energies

and love is the strongest of all

but to love deeply means to give up rule and control

and it's hard to invoke love as long as there's something call rich and poor

haves and have nots

so it's easier to rule with laws / rules / jails and guns

and keep the people fearful and hate burning

so the elite can continue to profit from it

don't you see ???

the super powerful and rich are never touch by the wars and riots...

[translator]

ET from planet 33

you been drinkin or smokin ?

This thread is about terror, threats of bombings. Loss of life - elderly to children.

for the above posters

I suppose the hope is with the recruitment of more than (500) for the cause of terror, expansion to 3000 in the name of religious needs. My hope is somebody, or many from an advanced security unit will infiltrate this lot and expose the shame and incompetence of their operation. Its weak and getting weaker as the days come and go. They dont have the experience or knowledge, look at the results the thai security forces have gained so far. as people post here, results spring up and end unfounded speculation about the thaksin govt. It's now a waiting game to clean up the terror recruiting boys and quash those wanna be terrorists already in place. Just be more vigilante until its resolved.

[george]

Hotels in Thai south beef up security after blast

With thousands of tourists expected for Songkran festival, hotels are hiringmore guards and seeking police help

BANGKOK: -- Hotels in south Thailand have said that the recent bombing of a tourist entertainment district has jolted them into strengthening security for next week's Songkran festival.

Thousands of tourists, mostly from Malaysia, are expected to flock to hotels in the region's commercial hub - Hat Yai in Songkhla province - for the annual Songkran festival that falls on April 13 to 15. The celebrations usually last the entire week.

Mr Thanong Mengchuay, manager of the Thanyong Hotel in Narathiwat, said extra security personnel had been hired for the holiday week and extensive checks would be carried out on all vehicles parked in hotel grounds.

Mr Somchart Pimthanapoonporn, president of the Hotel Association of Hat Yai, said people who refuse to have their vehicles checked would not be permitted to enter hotel premises.

Mr Ibrahim Anusa, manager of Changli in Yala, said he had asked for police help on top of doubling the number of security guards.

Tourist hotels in the three southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat have a total of 5,000 guest- rooms, while those in Songkhla have more than 2,100 rooms.

A bomb blast in the border town of Sungai Golok last Saturday, which directly targeted the public for the first time in this year's wave of violence in the south, has led many to believe that more attacks on 'soft spots' are forthcoming.

The bomb, hidden in a motorbike parked beside a strip of beer bars and karaoke lounges, wounded 28 people, including 10 from Malaysia.

Security forces on Saturday rushed to an abandoned cave in Yala believed to have been used by Muslim insurgents as a training compound.

About 60 police and military officers inspected the 400m-long cave and found one car battery, several metres of electrical wire, light bulbs, 30 water pipes, about six makeshift huts and food left over from a meal some time ago.

Though no explosives were found in the cave, Fourth Army chief Pisarn Wattanawongkeeree said materials that could be used to make bombs were discovered, Bangkok Post reported.

Lt-Gen Pisarn said villagers had tipped off the authorities on Friday that 'something suspicious' was going on in Tham Sua Cave.

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was upbeat about the news of the cave, saying the fact that a local villager had tipped off the authorities suggested the government's approach was going in the right direction.

Last Tuesday, about 10 masked gunmen raided a poorly guarded quarry and made off with 1.4 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, 56 sticks of dynamite and 176 detonators.

Killings in the Muslim south over the past three months have rocked security agencies, forcing the government to come up with new initiatives, including the revival of the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre that was disbanded by Mr Thaksin three years ago.

The government has said a similar but bigger unified command centre would be created to oversee development and security in the south.

But analysts said any inter- agency body would be difficult to initiate because of intense rivalry between the police and army and lack of cooperation from the residents.

-- The Nation/Asia News Network 2004-04-05

[udon]

Officials have ordered all 10 quarries in southern Thailand to hand their rock-blasting explosives to the army for safekeeping.

Bwahahahaha

They must be joking, the army couldn't guard a chicken coop! nor could the MiB

[george]

MALAYSIA HARBOURING MILITANTS?

Show us the proof, KL tells Bangkok

MALAYSIA is showing growing irritation over charges by Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra that it is harbouring Muslim separatist terrorists.

Yesterday, the gloves came off - Kuala Lumpur put aside its diplomatic niceties and said it was tired of Thailand's blame game and demanded that Bangkok show proof to back its allegations.

Defence Minister Najib Tun Razak said: 'We have said that, okay, you have made the remarks, now give us the information.

'If you give us information, we can act on it,' he said. 'What is necessary now is not more statements but accurate and timely intelligence.'

'Malaysia is not a safe haven for any terrorist,' he said.

The defence minister's comments followed sharp words from Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar a day earlier.

'Reports of terrorists, who are fighting for a separate state in the region, being trained in Malaysia, are old stories being repeated.

'We have openly, clearly and continuously given assurances to Thailand that we do not support any separatist movement and that we respect their territorial integrity and will not let our borders be used as training grounds,' Datuk Seri Syed Hamid told reporters on Monday.

The harsh tone between the two sides come ahead of the April 12 meeting between Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and his Thai counterpart Thaksin Shinawatra. The main agenda of the meeting would be the security situation in southern Thailand.

Thai government spokesman Jakrapob Penkair was yesterday quoted by AFP as saying: 'Thailand's Prime Minister never said Malaysia is a safe haven for terrorists, he never said that if there are no arrests it will affect the bilateral relationship.

'We will explain everything when the two leaders meet.'

The tiff is unusual as the two neighbours are normally polite in making public statements on bilateral matters.

But the issue bedeviling relations is not easy to resolve.

The spate of attacks and bombings in southern Thailand over the past few months has killed 60 people, putting pressure on the Thai government to act.

After almost each incident, Thai officials including Mr Thaksin were quick to point out that those responsible have dual Thai and Malaysian nationalities. And that they fled to Malaysia yet again.

Last Thursday, he said: 'It is now easy to kill somebody and flee to Malaysia where they have met openly to talk about such issues like secession.

'There is a village inside Malaysia which has been used as a refuge... We will need to tighten up along the border and sort out the problem of dual citizenship.'

He added: 'Malaysian villages on the border are places for sheltering and hiding terrorists. This is not a groundless accusation. The Malaysian authorities are fully aware of this and have pledged full cooperation.'

Malaysia and Thailand share a long common border.

Although there are many immigration checkpoints, such official barriers are often ignored by villagers living on the border.

One popular crossing point into Thailand from northern Kelantan is by taking boats across Sungai Golok, a river that separates the two countries, observers say.

--Reuters 2004-04-07