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Sunday, February 25, 2007

Sydney Morning Herald Article on Terrorism in Thailand

Thais' sense of self threatened by insurgency

Tom Allard National Security Editor
February 24, 2007
Brutality … a man carries a bar girl injured in a bombing in Yala province last Sunday.

Brutality … a man carries a bar girl injured in a bombing in Yala province last Sunday.


BEHEADINGS, mutilated Buddhist monks, assassinations of secular teachers, mass-casualty attacks - the Islamist insurgency raging in Thailand's south is getting more barbaric and effective with each passing month.


That is the assessment of terrorism analysts and Thai Government advisers after a spate of co-ordinated and deadly bombings this week, and warnings of more to come, including in Bangkok.


Even more worrying is the possibility of attacks on tourist resorts where Westerners, including thousands of Australians, flock.


"The brutality is amazing," said Zachary Abuza, a US terrorism expert who specialises in a conflict that has simmered for decades. "For the previous generation, these acts would have been considered unseemly. No one would have done things like hacking apart monks, blowing them up when they are collecting their alms, targeting women and children."


Rest of the story here

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