Hat Yai:
A bomb hidden in a pickup truck exploded in Thailand's violence-plagued south on Wednesday, killing two women and wounding eight other civilians, police said.
Suspected Islamic insurgents detonated the improvised explosive device while the vehicle was parked near a cockfighting ground in Pattani province's Kok Pho district, Police Colonel Chamlong Suwalak said.
He said two women, aged 31 and 74, were killed and a 12-year-old girl was among those severely hurt in the Wednesday attack. Another woman and six men were the others injured.
More than 5,000 people have been killed in Thailand's three Muslim-dominated southernmost provinces since an insurgency erupted in 2004. The insurgents often target soldiers, police and civil servants, but civilians, both Buddhist and Muslim, bear the brunt of their attacks.
There has been a spurt of attacks since the beginning of the Ramadan holy month on June 29. On the first day, one soldier and one civilian were killed in separate drive-by shootings in Yala and Pattani provinces, and on June 30, a group of unidentified gunmen opened fire at a mosque in Pattani province, killing one man and wounding another.
Buddhist vigilantes are believed responsible for some of the violence.
The insurgents are believed to be seeking a separate state, though they are not united and their goals and leadership are murky.