NARATHIWAT, Feb 24 — Twenty-three people, including seven police officers, were injured in a bomb explosion near a supermarket in Bannang Sata district, Yala province, yesterday.
Bannang Sata Police chief Col. Pol. Ranon Surawit said the explosion occurred at 8.20 pm local time and was believed to have been carried out by an armed group that authorities are tracking.
"At the time of the incident, several police officers were on patrol in two four-wheel-drive vehicles. When the police vehicles arrived at the supermarket, a bomb hidden nearby and believed to have been activated by remote control suddenly exploded," he told the media after visiting the scene here yesterday.
He said all the victims, consisting of seven police officers and 16 civilians, had been taken to Bannang Sata Hospital for treatment, and investigations are ongoing.
The explosion occurred a day before former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's working visit to the southern region of Thailand in an effort to find a solution to the long-running conflict.
The visit will be Thaksin's first visit to the region since being appointed as an informal adviser to the Asean chairman, and his first visit to the area in more than 20 years since his administration was toppled in 2006.
— Bernama
