Thailand: Moslems Fear Retribution

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April 24, 2007: Buddhists are calling for Buddhism to be declared the official religion of Thailand, and for Islamic terrorists to be treated more harshly. This means growing approval of all out war against the Islamic militants. The government would rather offer amnesty and try to convince the Moslems in the south to stop supporting the terrorists. There is a good case for this, as the Moslem population is too small to ever seriously threaten the Buddhist majority. Moreover, the Thais have a tendency to get really vicious when threatened. The government is trying to put a cap on that, because when the revenge attitude gets going, the Moslem population in the south will be in great danger. So much so that over a million Moslems could be pushed across the border into Malaysia, and thousands more killed. Several thousand have already fled to Malaysia, fearing retaliation by Thai Buddhists. Many Buddhists in the south are arming themselves and joining self-defense organizations.

April 23, 2007: Soldiers, on their way to put out a fire at a school, were ambushed by Islamic terrorists. At least 19 soldiers were wounded by gunfire and roadside bombs.

April 21, 2007: In the south, a roadside bomb killed three soldiers.

April 19, 2007: Thailand rejected a U.S. officer of help in dealing with Islamic militants in the south. Such American aid has been successful in the Philippines, where U.S. intel experts have been valuable in keeping tabs on terrorist communications. Thailand said it would be happy to receive any intelligence the U.S. had on the Islamic terrorism effort in southern Thailand.

April 16, 2007: Islamic terrorists are now destroying more schools, with five burned down in one day. The Islamic terrorists consider non-religious schools as an attempt to destroy their Moslem culture.

 

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