THAILAND : Nareerat (R), the injured aunt of six-year-old Patcharakorn Yosubon, the victim of a bomb blast, breaks down as she performs the last rites on the body of her niece at a Buddhist Temple in Bangkok Tuesday. — AFP BANGKOK, Feb 25 (AFP): Thailand risks sliding into civil war after a wave of political violence that has claimed 21 lives including several children, top security and army officials warned Tuesday.
Near-daily gun and grenade attacks in protest-hit Bangkok have raised concerns that a nearly four-month-old political crisis is entering a dangerous new phase with both sides refusing to back down.
More than 700 people have been wounded since demonstrators took to the streets for rolling rallies aimed at ousting Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and ending the political dominance of her billionaire family.
The head of Thailand's equivalent of the FBI warned Tuesday that the situation may "escalate into civil war".
Department of Special Investigation chief Tarit Pengdith urged "restraint and patience" on both sides of the political divide, during a televised address by officials handling the security response to the crisis.
His comments echoed a similar warning from the head of the coup-prone army.
"Absolutely, there will be civil war if all sides do not respect rules," General Prayut Chan-O-Cha wrote in an SMS to AFP.
"The military will do everything for the country and the people... not for a particular side," he added.
Protest and government leaders bear "responsibility for the losses", Prayut wrote, a day after warning in a rare televised speech that the country risks "collapse" unless it pulls back from the brink.
© 2026 - All Rights with The Financial Express
