Bangkok: A well-known mountain seeing place on the frontier has been forced to close due to unusual armed clashes in Laos, which are thought to be linked to drug trafficking, and the United States has issued a protection warning.
The Phu Chi Fa scenic spot, located on the border with Laos in northern Chiang Rai province, has been closed until further notice, according to Thai national park officials on Monday ( May 5 ).
Following reports of” clashes between the Chinese military and unexplained military groups,” the US consulate in Vientiane urged Americans considering a trip to Bokeo territory to evaluate.
The ambassador stated on its website that “local officials have requested raised safety levels, which will include an increase in military gates and army presence.”
Unrest is uncommon in socialist Laos, but it is a part of the Golden Triangle, which has been a hub for Southeast Asia’s attractive drug industry for decades. It covers the border regions of Myanmar and Thailand.
A border guard and drug smugglers clashed on Saturday, according to a report from state-run Lao National Radio on Tuesday, and four suspects were taken into custody.
Without providing specifics, the report claimed that some border police officers perished and suffered injuries during the fighting.
Laos authorities did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
Suphakorn Phromcharoen, the police commander in Thailand’s Wiang Kaen city, across the border from the scene of the conflicts, reported to AFP that at least one stray bullet had struck a house on the Thai side of the border.
According to Thai regulators, at least one man may have died and at least one hundred have been wounded.