Gov't tightens security on Thai border
Malaysia announced plans to intensify patrols along its border with Thailand's troubled south today ahead of talks here this week in which the two countries are expected to focus on security.
The crackdown was aimed at preventing arms smuggling after a spate of robberies involving semi-automatic M-16 rifles and large-calibre pistols in the capital Kuala Lumpur, a spokesman for Malaysia's home ministry told AFP .
Thai Interior Minister Wan Muhamad Nor Matha, on the other hand, is is reportedly due in Kuala Lumpur for talks Thursday on a series of bombings and arson attacks in his country's Muslim-majority south.
Thai authorities have said the attacks were not the work of terrorists but of local gangsters fighting over the profits from illegal businesses including smuggling and prostitution.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has vowed to swiftly end the mounting unrest, and hundreds of police assisted by sniffer dogs and helicopters have been dispatched to comb the mountainous areas on the border with Malaysia.
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