Thai Security Forces Fire at Red-shirt Protesters

Thai security forces on Friday battled red-shirt protesters in central Bangkok while trying to seal off their encampment following an assassination attempt on a renegade general that unleashed a new wave of violence, reported Reuters.

A witness said that forces opened fire repeatedly into an intersection leading to an encampment in a ritzy hotel and shopping district, injuring many people including two journalists, report said.

He, however, said that whether forces used live rounds, rubber bullets or both was not yet known, said report.

The journalists injured in the firing include a Bangkok-based foreign journalist working for France 24 television station and a Thai photographer, report said.

Analysts said that a possible split between a police force – having loyalties to ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra – and the military would make it more difficult to contain the violence, said report.

Witness said that those fears were underlined after a Thai policeman fired bullets at soldiers during the clashes, said report.

However, security forces have yet not fully sealed off all major roads leading to the ‘red shirt’ encampment, raising questions over whether the government could soon end the protests, report said.