Meanwhile, the prime minister, now on the third day of his trip to the Northeast, did not hastily conclude that the recent attacks on local politicians in the violence-plagued region was purely the work of insurgents, saying the motives were varied.

    Thaksin's remarks were made in response to the shooting of outgoing Narathiwat Senator Faqruddin Boto on Sunday, leaving him seriously wounded, and an incident Tuesday in which Faoseeya Utarasin, sister of former Thai Rak Thai MP Areepen Utarasin, was slightly wounded by what was believed to be a stray bullet in front of her house in the same province.

    The incidents prompted local politicians to seek protection as they fear that the insurgents will target politically prominent figures in the restive region.

    To address the concern, Thaksin said that he had assigned Deputy Prime Minister Chidchai Vanastidya to discuss with Royal Army Commander-in-Chief General Sonthi Boonyaratkalin how to protect those expected to be targeted by the insurgents.

    Asked if he thought the incidents were politically motivated, the premier said that the current situation stemmed from mixed causes -- national and local political conflicts, "influential figures," and the drug trade -- which were hard to separate from one another.

    "So it can't be concluded that it was caused by the insurgents. It might be the work of some political group," Thaksin said.

    However, the prime minister said he was confident that the violence in the troubled region would not escalate during the period of election campaigns.

    Responding to the reports that members of the Pattani United Liberation Organization (PULO) claimed responsibility for the ongoing insurgency in the region and threatened to stage their attacks against targets outside the deep South, such as Bangkok and Phuket, Thaksin said briefly that it was kind of propaganda. Enditem