[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated 19 September 2011 :-

Malaysian's death takes bomb toll to 5

The death toll in Friday's series of three bomb attacks in Narathiwat's Su-ngai Kolok district has risen to five after a Malaysian tourist succumbed to his injuries.

The district's normally lively downtown area has been mostly silent since the bombs exploded on Friday evening. Tourism-related businesses have been hurt by the attacks as tourists, mostly Malaysians, have cancelled their trips and hotel reservations over safety concerns.

"Tourists have cancelled reservations for 1,800 rooms owned by 42 hotel operators," said Saengthong Preechawuttidej, chairman of the Su-ngai Kolok Hotel Association.

Police would issue arrest warrants for two of eight suspects captured on video by closed-circuit cameras in a few days, said acting national police chief Pol General Priewpan Damapong.

Yau Wing, 53, succumbed to his injuries at Yala Hospital on Saturday night.

The attacks killed four Malaysian tourists - including a 3-year-old boy - and a Thai rescue worker.

26 STILL IN HOSPITAL

Meanwhile, 26 of the more than 100 people injured remain hospitalised, six of them in serious condition. They were admitted to Yala, Songkhla Nakarin University and Su-ngai Kolok hospitals.

Priewpan was flown by helicopter to the district yesterday to inspect the attack scenes. Provincial police reported to him on the progress of the investigation.

During their report presentation, police said the two suspects were members of a militant group in Su-ngai Padi district in the same province. Police identified them only as Saman and Mading, withholding their surnames. The suspects were under surveillance by plainclothes police officers to prevent them from escaping, they said.

Priewpan said the two suspects were Runda Kumpalan Kecil (RKK) members hired by drug syndicates in the area to carry out the attack in retaliation for a major drug bust.

The RKK is a Malay nationalist group blamed for violence in the South.

TOURISM 'AFFECTED'

Saengthong said the bomb attacks on Friday evening were the worst incident since violence first broke out in 2004, as it was the first time that bomb attacks had killed foreign tourists.

He said the incident had unavoidably affected tourism, the economy and trade in the district as it caused tourists and entrepreneurs, especially those from Kelantan and Terengganu states in Malaysia, to fear for their safety.

Aman Madadam, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's Narathiwat office, said the Malaysian media had devoted a lot of attention to the attacks, reporting from the district continuously.

Aman and Saengthong called on authorities to implement practical measures to ensure people's safety in a bid to restore the district's image.

Saengthong said hotel operators and other service-sector firms would not leave Su-ngai Kolok, despite the violence. But the government would have to act sincerely to end the chronic violence, he said.

Priewpan said police, military and administrative officials would adjust their security measures, taking responsibility for clearly zoned areas and co-ordinating their work.