A powerful car bomb ripped through a town centre in Thailand8217;s troubled Muslim-majority south on Friday,killing at least one border policeman and wounding 12 other people,police said.
The device was hidden in a pick-up truck and detonated near a number of parked police trucks as officers bought breakfast in Yala,the main town in the restive province of the same name,they said.
8220;There is a large area of devastation,8221; an anonymous senior police official said. 8220;At least one border patrol unit officer is dead and 12 people are wounded,including two policemen.8221;
Witnesses said three cars including the pick-up truck that apparently contained the bomb were completely burned out at the scene. Police said the bomb contained an estimated 50 kilograms of explosives.
The bombing comes during a spike in violence in Thailand8217;s southern provinces bordering Malaysia as the region marks the holy month of Ramadan.