KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak Friday hoped that Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra would find a solution to the conflict in southern Thailand quickly.

    Malaysia did not want to see the conflict being prolonged as this would lead to more people becoming victims, Najib told reporters here.

    "We are certainly worried about the latest development there," he said when was asked about Thursday evening's car bomb blast in Sungai Golok, a town on the Malaysian-Thai border, which left fivepeople dead and 40 others including a Malaysian businessman injured.

    The car bomb, said to be the largest to hit the region, exploded at 7 p.m. Thursday near the Marina Hotel in the popular tourist town of Sungai Kolok in Narathiwat province, bordering Malaysia.

    Najib, who is also the Defense Minister, said the Malaysian government was monitoring the development in the area.

    Meanwhile, Najib also advised the Malaysians not to visit southern Thailand for the time being as the situation there was not safe.

    The powerful car bomb in Thailand's Muslim-dominated south cameon the heels of a visit to the volatile region by Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who delivered a tough message on security. Enditem