Bomb blasts were among 23 coordinated attacks that rocked Muslim-majority southern Thailand early on Friday, a security officer said, just hours after King Maha Vajiralongkorn signed a new constitution as a step towards ending military rule.
Police reported no casualties in the region, site of a recent upsurge in a decades-old Muslim separatist insurgency that had voted the most strongly against the new constitution at a referendum last year.
"The incidents are aimed to create disturbances," Pramote Prom-in, a spokesman for regional security forces, told Reuters. "They want to destroy the government's credibility and create fear among people."
There was no immediate claim of responsibility and security forces said they could not yet identify which insurgent group was to blame.
The attacks were scattered across 19 districts in the southern region, grouping the provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, and the nearby province of Songkhla, he said.
A large number of co-ordinated attacks in the region is unusual. Complete details were not immediately available, but they ranged from bomb explosions at 52 electricity poles, triggering widespread regional power cuts, to several tyre-burning incidents, Pramote added.
On Thursday, Thailand's king signed into law a military-backed constitution, an essential step towards an election the ruling junta has promised will restore democracy after the 12th successful coup in little over 80 years.
The new constitution is the Southeast Asian country's 20th since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932, and critics say it will still give the generals a powerful say over Thai politics for years, if not decades.
Voters in the most heavily Muslim parts of Thailand were among the few to reject the draft constitution in last year's referendum.
The timing of the attacks just hours after the constitution was proclaimed was curious, said Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan, but there was no conclusive evidence it was a motive.
A Malay Muslim separatist insurgency in the three southern provinces has killed more than 6,500 since it escalated in 2004, independent monitoring group Deep South Watch says.
On Monday, police reported what they called the biggest insurgent attack in the south in years, when about 30 people fired more than 500 shots into a police booth.
In February, the government of the Buddhist-majority country struck a deal with MARA Patani, an umbrella group that says it speaks for the insurgents, but other separatists rejected it.
Reuters
Fri Apr 07 2017
King Maha Vajiralongkorn (R) returns the constitution after signing it to Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha at Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall in Bangkok, April 6, 2017. Thailand Royal Household Bureau/Handout via REUTERS
KOM beri tiga atlet kebebasan pilih SUKMA atau kejohanan dunia
KOM memberi kebebasan kepada tiga atlet muda kebangsaan, untuk memilih sama ada mewakili negeri ke SUKMA atau menyahut cabaran negara pada Kejohanan Olahraga Dunia Bawah 20 tahun (B-20) 2024.
Anggota polis didakwa terima rasuah beri tembakau kepada tahanan lokap
Seorang anggota polis berpangkat koperal berhadapan dua pertuduhan menerima rasuah sebagai balasan membawa masuk barang terlarang kepada tahanan lokap.
SPRM sahkan tiada penyelewengan, rasuah dikesan dalam projek NTC setakat ini
SPRM mengesahkan tidak menemui sebarang penyelewengan serta rasuah setakat ini berhubung cadangan projek pembinaan National Training Center (NTC) di Putrajaya yang dianggar bernilai RM25 juta.
WEF: Perdagangan Malaysia, Arab Saudi boleh diperkukuh menerusi kerjasama - Tengku Zafrul
Kerjasama Malaysia-Arab Saudi dengan saling memanfaat kekuatan antara satu sama lain dapat menyokong pertumbuhan perdagangan dan pelaburan.
Jalan berlubang, penunggang motosikal dapat ganti rugi RM721,000
Akibat kemalangan tersebut, plaintif mengalami kecederaan di bahu, lengan, jari dan kepala.
Selamatkan Gaza: Gaza semakin hari semakin memburuk
Peperangan di Gaza semakin hari semakin memburuk. Setakat ini dilaporkan lebih 37 ribu warga Gaza telah terkorban kerana serangan demi serangan daripada rejim Zionis.
Ia membawa kepada berlakunya krisis kemanusiaan di Gaza ketika ini.
Di Mesyuarat Khas wef yang berlangsung di Arab Saudi..krisis ini menjadi antara tumpuan.
Kita terus bersama dengan Najib Aroff dan Ashwad Ismail yang mengikuti mesyuarat ini di Arab Saudi.
Ia membawa kepada berlakunya krisis kemanusiaan di Gaza ketika ini.
Di Mesyuarat Khas wef yang berlangsung di Arab Saudi..krisis ini menjadi antara tumpuan.
Kita terus bersama dengan Najib Aroff dan Ashwad Ismail yang mengikuti mesyuarat ini di Arab Saudi.
Letupan bom Sungai Golok: Empat anggota keselamatan Thailand cedera
Empat anggota keselamatan Thailand cedera apabila terkena letupan bom di Sungai Golok, Thailand, malam tadi.
Berang tidak bantu angkat tong gas, penghantar barang dibelasah, motosikal dirosakkan
Suspek menyerang mangsa dengan topi keledar sehingga menyebabkan mangsa mengalami kecederaan di dahi.
Arahan tutup pasar malam waktu Maghrib tidak babitkan peniaga bukan Islam
Arahan penutupan sementara hanya membabitkan peniaga Islam bagaimanapun turut menggalakkan peniaga bukan Islam sekiranya mahu berbuat demikian.
Pelan Tindakan Pendidikan dan Penghayatan Rukun Negara dilancar Ogos ini - Aaron
Ia melibatkan Kementerian Perpaduan Negara, Kementerian Pendidikan, Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi, dan Kementerian Komunikasi.