May 6, 2012: Police in the south have been ordered to increase their efforts to halt illegal drug operations, particularly the smuggling from Malaysia. Police were also told to reduce the crime rate. Not just Islamic terrorism but ordinary crime. The Moslem south has always been more lawless than the rest of the country, largely because of the smuggling gangs. Early on these criminal groups provided support for Islamic terrorists, as a way of distracting police from anti-gang work. But the terrorism brought more troops and police south, to protect the non-Moslem minority from the terrorists, and now these security troops are being told to go after the gangs as well. Some of the gangsters want to back off on their support for the Islamic radicals but that is proving difficult to do. The Islamic radicals have become skilled at killing and hostile to taking orders from anyone but God. This could get interesting. Some of the Islamic radicals have been enticed into the gangster life but many are still on a Mission From God.

May 4, 2012: A Karen tribal rebel leader (Na Kham Mwe) in neighboring Myanmar (Burma) has threatened to harm Thais living or working on the Burma side of the border if the Thai government does not retract a recently announced reward for the capture of Na Kham Mwe, who is one of three Burmese drug smugglers named on a new Thai "25 Most Wanted" list. Na Kham Mwe considers himself a tribal rebel first (against an oppressive Burmese government) and a drug smuggler second (to pay for the rebellion).

May 3, 2012:  Down south Islamic terrorists killed a local official and three subordinates and stole a $10,000 government payroll.

May 2, 2012: A soldier patrolling near a disputed area on the Cambodian border lost a leg to a landmine. The government accused Cambodia of violating an international agreement by deliberately planting landmines. Both countries have agreed to stop using landmines. While Cambodian soldiers may have supplied the landmines, it appears that corrupt Cambodian soldiers are helping illegal lumbering operations that Thai troops have interfered with. The Cambodian tree poachers have been taking lumber illegally in Thai territory and the Thai soldiers have shut some of the poachers down. So the poachers had the Cambodian soldiers on their payroll plant landmines, as these soldiers could not just open fire on the Thai troops and violate the peace deal.

May 1, 2012: In the south a motorcycle bomb killed two soldiers and wounded six others.

April 30, 2012: In the south one civilian was wounded when a grenade was thrown into a shop. It's unclear if this was Islamic terrorism or criminals extorting money.

April 24, 2012: The government enacted a fund to pay compensation to people arrested in the south on terror charges and freed by the courts. Families of innocent people killed during anti-terror operations will also receive compensation. In the last eight years over 5,000 have died down south due to Islamic terrorists seeking to drive out all non-Moslems and establish a religious dictatorship.

April 20, 2012: In the south two roadside bombs wounded security troops. Islamic terrorists were believed responsible.

April 19, 2012: In the south police surrounded some Islamic terrorists in a village and killed five during a gun battle.