Bomb and gunfire attack in Narathiwat kills 5 soldiers
Six civilians, including a 10-year-old boy, were also wounded as police hunt suspects who allegedly torched a vehicle to erase traces.
Five members of Thailand's paramilitary ranger force were killed after a group of attackers fired guns and threw pipe bombs at the Buke Sami checkpoint in Ra-ngae District, Narathiwat Province, on Wednesday evening. Six civilians were also injured, including a 10-year-old boy. CCTV footage cited by local media showed six people dressed in black arriving in a pickup truck, while two other attackers on motorcycles also opened fire. Authorities said the attackers approached the bodies, took bulletproof vests and ammunition bags, then fled. Hours later, residents in Si Sakhon District found a black pickup truck burned out, which was believed to have been used by the attackers to destroy evidence. The attack came amid a separatist conflict that has killed more than 7,000 people in southern Thailand since 2004.