Bangkok (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Three Thai policemen were killed today in a bomb explosion in the country's tormented south. The officers were inspecting railway tracks in Chana district in Songkhla province when the explosion occurred. They were with another colleague who was injured. The episode followed a night of heightened tension in the area during which 100 apparently coordinated blasts were reported. The authorities have laid the blame at the door of the Muslim rebels but criminal gangs also appear to be at work in southern Thailand.

Songkhla is near the three provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani, where last night, 97 bombs and a series of attacks and shooting struck government and civilian targets. According to international media, this was the largest attack in the area in over a month. Initial reports spoke of two people injured but no deaths. Official sources said the attacks took place near the homes of policemen and state officials but also in karaoke bars, train stations and a Buddhist temple.

Since the eighties, the three southern Muslim-majority provinces that border Malaysia, have been calling for independence from the rest of the country, which is predominantly Buddhist and has a different language and culture. Violence intensified in 2004, targeting teachers and monks. In the last two years, the clashes led to 1,400 deaths. At the moment, a state of emergency is in force in the region.