Soldier killed in Thai clashes
A soldier wounded during a clash with anti-government protesters in Thailand today has died, becoming the 27th victim of the recent political conflict.
The government’s Erawan emergency centre confirmed the death and said 18 other people had been injured in clashes as troops tried to block protesters from advancing along a road just north of Bangkok.
Witnesses said it appeared the soldier was shot by other security forces during a chaotic confrontation.
The clash came after Red Shirt demonstrators, who have paralysed parts of the capital for weeks in their campaign to bring down a government they view as illegitimate, had announced that they were widening their demonstrations and dared the military to stop them as hundreds headed on motorbikes and pickup trucks to a planned rally in a suburb.
Along Vibhavadi-Rangsit road, riot squads fired into the air to push back protesters but several tried to remove razor wire blocks, prompting troops to level their rifles and shoot directly at protesters who fled into oncoming traffic.
Then security forces accidentally fired on a group of troops riding toward them on motorbikes. At least four bikes crashed and one soldier was carried away on a stretcher, bleeding profusely from the head.
Later the protesters headed back to their enclave.
However, the shooting raised concerns that more violence was to come after government warnings that patience was running out in the seven-week stand-off.
The army said troops were told to use rubber bullets but also had authority to use live ammunition for self-defence.
“We brought force out to stop them. At this point, society finds it unacceptable to have protesters travelling in a motorcade like this,” a spokesman said. “We try our best to prevent losses.”
The demonstration appeared intended to provoke the government, which has repeatedly said it will not tolerate protests beyond the Red Shirts’ enclave in the city.
It was the first confrontation since five grenades were fired near a gathering of counter-protesters last Thursday, killing one person.
At least 26 people have been killed and nearly 1,000 wounded since protesters began occupying parts of Bangkok in mid-March, barricading major roads with tires and bamboo sticks and forcing the closure of some of the city’s luxury malls and hotels.
