VIDEO - Bomb Explodes in Thailand's Southern Province of Yala.killing 3 people and injuring more than 30 including a Malaysian

Malaysian believed to be injured in Thai bomb blast

RAKYAT POST

Thai rescue workers spraying water to stop a fire at the site where a bomb exploded outside a hotel in Betong town in Thailand's southern province of Yala on July 25, 2014. — AFP pic

KUALA LUMPUR, July 25:

Malaysia’s top cop has warned Malaysians to avoid travelling to Thailand following a bomb blast in Betong.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar tweeted: “I advise Malaysians not to go to southern Thailand. The situation there is dangerous and volatile”.

Earlier today, a bomb attached to a pick-up truck was detonated in the afternoon in front of a hotel in Betong, a town in Thailand bordering Malaysia.

Betong, located near Pengkalan Hulu, Gerik is a popular haunt for Malaysian tourists who visit the place for its night life as well as shopping.

Betong is the southernmost district of Yala Province.

Members of a bomb squad inspecting damaged vehicles caused by a bomb explosion outside a hotel in Betong. — AFP pic

It was understood that the 5.30pm (local time) incident claimed three lives and injured more than 30 people.

There are no confirmed reports of any Malaysian victim so far, although some reports are claiming at least one Malaysian was injured in the explosion.

Sinar Harian reports that a Malaysian, believed to be an Indian, identified as Jeemihan only was among the injured.

The incident was confirmed by Pengkalan Hulu district police chief Deputy Superintendent Syarifuddin Yusof.

Meanwhile, The Bangkok Post reported that the explosives were hidden in a Toyota Vigo pick-up truck parked in front of the Betong Holiday Hill hotel on Bhakdi Damrong Road in Tambon Betong.

Vehicle bomb kills 2, hurts 31 in Thailand's south

Associated Press – 28 minutes ago

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HAT YAI, Thailand (AP) — A bomb hidden in a pickup truck exploded in a commercial district in Thailand's violence-plagued south on Friday, killing two people and wounding 31 other civilians, police said. Another bomb targeting soldiers injured four.

Suspected insurgents detonated the improvised explosive device while the pickup truck was parked across from a hotel in Yala province's Betong district, police Col. Wasan Phuangnoi said.

He said a woman and a man were killed, and 31 other civilians, including a foreigner, were wounded in the explosion that also damaged other vehicles and set fire on buildings.

Also Friday, four soldiers were injured by a roadside bomb that exploded in front of a school in Sukhirin district in Narathiwat province, according to Police Col. Somchai Panom-uppakarn. The four were on duty to protect teachers.

More than 5,000 people have been killed in Thailand's three Muslim-dominated southernmost provinces since an Islamic insurgency erupted in 2004. The insurgents often target soldiers, police and civil servants such as teachers, but civilians, both Buddhist and Muslim, bear the brunt of the attacks.

Betong is one of the few areas where attacks have been infrequent. The last major incident in the town was in 2006, when militants planted bombs at six commercial bank branches.

A spurt of attacks has occurred since the Ramadan holy month began at the end of June.

On Wednesday, another bomb hidden in a pickup truck killed two women and wounded eight other civilians near a cockfighting ground in Pattani province's Kok Pho district.