Malaysia is willing to provide temporary refuge for Thai nationals fleeing the violence in Southern Thailand, said Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today.

"It will not be refugee camps but some arrangements must be made," he was quoted as saying in a Bernama report.

"It's better that the matter be discussed when (Deputy Prime Minister) Najib (Abdul Razak) goes there...we also want to know the problems on the Thai side and we must take action on our side," he added.

However, the premier stressed that those wanted by the Thai authorities will not be given refuge here.

"They will want a place of refuge until peace returns to their area and with the uncertainty at present naturally they will want to come over here," he said.

In view of this, Abdullah urged the security forces to ensure that no elements wanted by the Thai authorities breached the country's border.

Avoid misunderstanding

He said he had directed Najib and Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar to go to Bangkok to get a clear picture on what is happening in southern Thailand.

Abdullah said this would enable the government to make some arrangements to avoid misunderstanding between the two countries.

He said Najib would make the arrangements for the visit of the Malaysian delegation to Thailand.

Abdullah also expressed hoped that the Thai government would take whatever measures to restore peace.

On Wednesday, 112 people were killed when the Thai military and police swung into action.

The authorities claimed that the separatist rebels were armed with machine guns but other reports said they were only wielding machetes.

Meanwhile, PAS Youth today urged Malaysia to call for an emergency meeting of Asean's foreign ministers to address this issue.

It said the regional association must intervene to quell the violence before the situation escalated and affected other countries.