YALA: Insurgents torched a double-decker interprovincial bus heading from Betong district to Bangkok after they forced 11 passengers, driver and an attendant to leave the bus.
The Bannang Sata police received a report of the attack on Road 410 at 2.20pm and rushed to the scene at Ban Kasod with explosive ordnance experts.
They found a double-decker bus operated by Siam Transport Co engulfed in flames.
Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire in about 10 minutes, but the bus was destroyed.
Police also found burnt tyres, a felled tree and spikes spread over the road to block traffic. Bus attendant Marorwe Ding said the Bangkok-bound bus had left Betong with 11 passengers, a driver and himself on board.
At Ban Kasod, burning tyres on the road blocked their way. When the bus stopped, 10-15 armed men dressed like soldiers emerged from the roadside jungle and ordered everyone off the vehicle.
They then doused the vehicle with petrol and set it alight before leaving the scene, according to Mr Marorwe. The attackers spoke in the Yawi dialect and did not harm anyone on the bus, he added.
Abdullah Sabaebo, 54, a driver, said the insurgents, all of them with covered faces, told passengers they would not kill anyone. Passengers ran into bush by the roadside as soon as they left the bus.
Phuangsuda Lopat, 65, a passenger from Betong, said she was going to meet a doctor in Bangkok when the incident took place.
There were three pickup trucks in front of the bus and when the trucks reached the scene, the attackers forced them to turn back the way they came.
"They told us to calm down, saying that no one would be killed. One of them even helped me to carry bags. They just wanted the bus," said Ms Phuangsuda.
"We were very lucky to survive this frightening incident," she said.
Police suspected insurgents led by Ahama Leubasar were behind the torching as they were active in the area.
It was suspected that at least 20 people were involved in the operation, split into groups responsible for felling the tree, setting fire to the tyres and torching the bus, investigators said.
