Bombs in southern Thailand kill 2, wound 52

5/24/2014

BANGKOK — A series of coordinated bomb attacks in restive southern Thailand hit convenience stores, gas stations and other locations, killing two people and wounding dozens, police said.

The explosions late today occurred in Pattani province in Thailand’s predominantly Muslim south, where an Islamic insurgency has claimed thousands of lives.

It was unlikely that the blasts were related to the military coup staged in Thailand’s capital this past week, though insurgents may have been emboldened by the development.

Pattani provincial police chief Phote Suaisuwan said the blasts hit four 7-11 convenience stores, two gas stations and three other locations. A hospital reported that it treated 52 people and had two dead.

More than 5,000 people have been killed since the insurgency flared in 2004. Thai Muslims complain of being treated as second-class citizens by the Buddhist majority.