Thai troops fired bullets and tear gas at anti-government protesters rioting near the U.S. and Japanese embassies Friday as an army push to clear the streets sparked bloody clashes and turned central Bangkok into a virtual war zone.
Violence escalated after a rogue army general regarded as a military advisor to the Red Shirt protesters was shot in the head on Thursday evening, possibly by a sniper, leaving him in a critical condition. Ensuing street clashes have killed one Red Shirt and wounded 12 other people, including a Thai photographer and a foreign journalist.
With security deteriorating and hopes of a peaceful resolution to the two-month standoff fading, unrest plunged Thailand deeper into political uncertainty, threatening the country's stability, economy and already-decimated tourism industry.Related
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Friday's violence was centered on a small area home to several foreign embassies. Soldiers crouched behind a raised road divider and fired rubber bullets, live ammunition and tear gas shells. Army vehicles were seen speeding on deserted streets littered with stones and debris. Protesters retreated and hurled rocks and insults.
Fighting has now killed 30 people and injured hundreds since the Red Shirts, mostly rural poor, began camping in the capital on March 12, in a bid to force out Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. They claim his coalition government came to power illegitimately through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military, which in 2006 forced the populist premier favored by the Red Shirts, Thaksin Shinawatra, from office in a coup.
Last week, Abhisit offered November elections, raising hopes that a compromise could be reached with the Red Shirts, who have been demanding immediate elections. Those hopes were dashed after Red Shirt leaders made more demands.
Late Thursday, the army moved to seal off the Red Shirt barricaded encampment which covers 1-square-mile (3-square-kilometer) in an upscale commercial district of the capital. Some 10,000 protesters, women and children among them, have crammed into the area.House building
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