Most of the Thai Muslims who took refuge in Malaysia last year have told Thai authorities that they want to return home, Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar has said.

The flight of the 131 Thai Muslims triggered a diplomatic row between Thailand and Malaysia, which insisted that the group should not be forced to return, particularly if their safety could not be assured.

Syed Hamid said there had been discussions on the group's fate with his Thai counterpart Kantathi Suphamongkhon.

"Kantathi told me that they are still negotiating the matter, and 99 of them had agreed to return," he told the official Bernama news agency late Sunday.

"The statement invalidates claims that they are no longer interested in the group. Previously we read in the papers statements that doubt Thailand's interest in the group," he said.

No deadline set

Syed Hamid said the government would not stop the displaced people from returning home and that there was no deadline for them to make a decision.

The 131 Thai Muslims fled across the border from their homes in southern Thailand in August 2005, citing insecurity and fear of persecution by the Thai government.

In December, Malaysia extradited to Thailand one of the group who was wanted in connection with the Muslim insurgency raging in southern Thailand which has left more than 1,200 people dead over the past two years.