Police said on Thursday the death toll in the South has passed 3,000 since the extremists rekindled the violence in January, 2004.
The government is scheduled to launch yet another effort to combat the insurgency this week. Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej will hold an emergency meeting on Friday.
Earlier this week, Minister Chalerm Yubamrung admitted he had "no idea" how to curb the unrest and called for help from the opposition Democrat party, whose political strength is in the troubled region.
Police on Thursday, quoted by the AFP news agency, put the death toll since 2004 at 3,004, pushed by killings of soldiers and insurgents on Wednesday, in addition to the murder of a 72-year-old Buddhist shopkeeper by four insurgents inside his Yala grocery store.
The gunmen also planted a bomb that was aimed at killing police called to the crime scene, but it was detected and defused in time.
Srawut Aree, a professor of Muslim studies at Chulalongkorn University, said the government has made little progress in easing the violence because it has failed to identify any of the military leaders, according to the AFP report.
"The problem is the government still cannot recognise real actors behind violent attacks," Srawut said. "Militants have never issued statements or claimed responsibility."
Also on Wednesday, two members of the Runda Kumpulan Kecil (RKK) insurgent group were killed in a gunfight with soldiers in Raman district of Yala yesterday. One of them was identified as Sunawa Yago, 28, a core leader of the group with a 500,000-baht bounty on his head. The other was not identified.
Police said the two men opened fire on the patrol, which shot back. None of the soldiers were injured. A .357 pistol and a 9mm pistol used by the insurgents in the gunfight were recovered.
In Bannang Sata district, a border defence volunteer was killed by a motorcycle pillion rider while on his way home yesterday. The gunman also took the volunteer's 11mm pistol.
In Muang district, two people were killed by a hand grenade hurled into a mosque yesterday.
In neighbouring Narathiwat, nine militant suspects, one a woman, were arrested in raids in Rueso, Rangae, Si Sakhon and Cho Airong districts.
Police seized materials believed to be used by the suspects in attacks on public places, including 50kg of metal spikes and PVC pipes. The nine suspects denied all the charges.
In Pattani, a suspected militant was killed and three soldiers wounded in an armed clash during a pre-dawn raid in Khok Pho district.
Another insurgent suspect was arrested and ammunition and a transceiver were seized. (BangkokPost.com)
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The government is scheduled to launch yet another effort to combat the insurgency this week. Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej will hold an emergency meeting on Friday.
Earlier this week, Minister Chalerm Yubamrung admitted he had "no idea" how to curb the unrest and called for help from the opposition Democrat party, whose political strength is in the troubled region.
Police on Thursday, quoted by the AFP news agency, put the death toll since 2004 at 3,004, pushed by killings of soldiers and insurgents on Wednesday, in addition to the murder of a 72-year-old Buddhist shopkeeper by four insurgents inside his Yala grocery store.
The gunmen also planted a bomb that was aimed at killing police called to the crime scene, but it was detected and defused in time.
Srawut Aree, a professor of Muslim studies at Chulalongkorn University, said the government has made little progress in easing the violence because it has failed to identify any of the military leaders, according to the AFP report.
"The problem is the government still cannot recognise real actors behind violent attacks," Srawut said. "Militants have never issued statements or claimed responsibility."
Also on Wednesday, two members of the Runda Kumpulan Kecil (RKK) insurgent group were killed in a gunfight with soldiers in Raman district of Yala yesterday. One of them was identified as Sunawa Yago, 28, a core leader of the group with a 500,000-baht bounty on his head. The other was not identified.
Police said the two men opened fire on the patrol, which shot back. None of the soldiers were injured. A .357 pistol and a 9mm pistol used by the insurgents in the gunfight were recovered.
In Bannang Sata district, a border defence volunteer was killed by a motorcycle pillion rider while on his way home yesterday. The gunman also took the volunteer's 11mm pistol.
In Muang district, two people were killed by a hand grenade hurled into a mosque yesterday.
In neighbouring Narathiwat, nine militant suspects, one a woman, were arrested in raids in Rueso, Rangae, Si Sakhon and Cho Airong districts.
Police seized materials believed to be used by the suspects in attacks on public places, including 50kg of metal spikes and PVC pipes. The nine suspects denied all the charges.
In Pattani, a suspected militant was killed and three soldiers wounded in an armed clash during a pre-dawn raid in Khok Pho district.
Another insurgent suspect was arrested and ammunition and a transceiver were seized. (BangkokPost.com)
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