Thai Security Forces Kill 6 Suspected Insurgents in Gunbattle

The 20-minute fight Tuesday afternoon came as a combined force of police and soldiers laid siege to a house in Pattani province, which along with neighboring Yala and Narathiwat has been the scene of a Muslim separatist insurgency since 2004.

Police and soldiers, who surrounded the house with a force of about 200 after following a suspect there, first asked the men to surrender, but received no response. Two police officers were wounded in the fighting.

No suspected insurgents were taken into custody or were known to have escaped. Two assault rifles, one pistol and a hand grenade were found inside the house. Police said they were checking the identities of the dead men, but believed all were subjects of arrest warrants. They believe one of them was Arhama Duramae Pa-do, suspected of shooting a policeman last year.