When the bus they were riding in was involved in a wayside bombing on Friday morning in Narathiwat’s Rueso district, three monks and two voluntary rangers were hurt.
At 6.25 am, the explosion happened in Soi Charoen Rat 2 close to an agricultural products store in the district’s tambon Rueso Ok, only as a light van carrying three priests was passing by from Wat Phairot Pracharam.
The local clergy were there to collect donations.
Security forces, including Explosive Ordnance Disposal ( EOD ) officers, a special unit of Narathiwat Provincial Police, and forensic experts, were rushed to the scene as soon as the alarm was raised, according to Pol Col Thanya Lamboon, head of Reuso police station.
When they arrived, they discovered two injured soldiers escorting the three injured priests. Chaichit Namkhet, one of the guards, apparently sustained head shrapnel wounds while operating the vehicle.
The owner of the agricultural tools store, Mustaha Yama, and a number of other people helped transport all the injured to Rueso Hospital.
In the interim, the place had been sealed off so that the EOD officers could inspect the fire site.
There were bits of a potent homemade incendiary device scattered around the area. According to police, the explosives-containing system, which weighed about 50 kg, had been packed into a cooking oil barrel and placed close to an 1, 000 gallon water tank.
According to police, radio control set off the blast, which had a 100-meter fire radius.
The agrarian store, along with the van, three near homes, and two delivery trucks, were all significantly damaged. Police attributed the explosion to a local rebel organization.
According to a source, the incident was comparable to one that took place near in December 2021 as some monks from Wat Rat Samoson were being led by security personnel to collect alms. One priest, one peasant, and two rangers were hurt by that storm in the early morning.
Citizens are concerned that monks and Buddhists may once again be the targets of rebel groups as a result of the most recent event, according to the supply.