June 21, 2008
Yala - Ten people were killed when a military helicopter yesterday crashed in Yala, the army spokesman said.
Four military officers and six forensic officials were on their way back from investigating the killing of a border policeman when their helicopter crashed. All on board were killed instantly.
"All 10 people on board were killed when the helicopter developed a technical problem and tried to land, but crashed to the ground," army spokesman Colonel Acra Tiproch told AFP.
Two pilots, two mechanics and six forensic officials were said to be on board. The helicopter was on its way back to Bannang Sata military base in Yala province.
Earlier Friday a border patrol police sergeant was killed and four police wounded after the latest ambush by separatist Muslim militants. A sixth policeman was still missing.
Militants opened fire on the police patrolling in a pickup truck in Bannang Sata.
A brief gunfight ensued and the police truck veered off the road into a ravine.
The attack comes a day after a roadside bomb which killed two policemen and wounded five in nearby Pattani province.
