The Thai government has extended an overnight curfew for three days as security in Bangkok remains uncertain after the army broke up an anti-government protest camp. The city has set about cleaning up from the months of protests and nearly a week of street violence.

City workers using bulldozers and trucks Thursday set about clearing away the debris left after the Thai army shut down the red-shirt protest camp in Bangkok's center.

Workers dismantled the protesters' barricades of rubber tires and bamboo poles near the start of Silom Road, the city's financial district.

Pratsarn, a supervisor from the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority, says it will take at least two days to clear the area, in part because the army must make it safe. He says the army gave the clearance for the cleanup crews after checking for unexploded materials.

Many of the red-shirt leaders had surrendered by Thursday, and urged their supporters to go home, but some protesters refused and resisted efforts to capture them.

The army reported small pockets of fighting in Bangkok Thursday, as it hunted down resisters. But overall, the city was calm, a day after the army used armoured personnel carriers to push into the protest camp at Rajaprasong, an upscale shopping and residential district.

At least nine people died during the operation, bringing the death toll to more than 70 since the protests began in mid-March.

Satish Sehgal is a Bangkok publisher who lives near the Bon Kai area, which saw intense fighting Wednesday. He says security in Bon Kai remains uncertain, so roads have not re-opened, because some red shirts remain active in the area.

"I believe [authorities] are only waiting to clear the area in Bon Kai because apparently some activists and some terrorists are still hidden in different buildings around that area," he said. "The army is still looking for weapons and explosives down Rajadamri Road. But other than that it is only matter of time that things get back to normal."

The government has extended the overnight curfew it imposed Wednesday on Bangkok and more than 20 other provinces for three more nights.

The red shirts, many of whom support former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, had demanded that the government resign. They said they were denied their votes when Mr. Thaksin as ousted in a coup in 2006 and subsequent, elected, pro-Thaksin governments were removed by court rulings.

Mr. Thaksin, who lives overseas to avoid a prison sentence for corruption, warned the army crackdown may trigger violence elsewhere in the country. He has called for outside mediation to resolve the crisis, which the government rejects.

The government says Mr. Thaksin helped orchestrate the protests, a charge he denies.

Thai authorities say they have restored order in most of Bangkok a day after launching a deadly operation to clear thousands of opposition Red Shirt activists from a protest site in the capital. Security forces fired warning shots Thursday in parts of the capital as they searched for militants who resisted Wednesday's government raid on the Red Shirts' encampment.

Officials say the number of people killed in the raid has risen to 15 with another 100 people wounded. The dead include six people whose bodies were recovered from a Buddhist temple within the protest zone.

Militants responded to the raid by setting fire to at least 35 Bangkok buildings, leaving many in ruins, including the Center World mall, one of the region's biggest. Some buildings were still smoldering Thursday as firefighters tried to put out the flames.

City workers also started to clean up the area the Red Shirts had occupied in Bangkok's commercial hub for more than two months. The protesters had demanded early elections to replace a government they deemed illegitimate and elitist. Most of the protesters are rural poor and working class activists who support deposed former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Thai government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn expressed understanding Thursday for the frustrations of the Red Shirts. But he also said arson attacks and looting carried out by some protesters were criminal acts that amount to organized terrorism.

Three Red Shirt leaders turned themselves in to police Thursday, raising the number in police custody to eight. One of the three who surrendered, Veera Musikapong, appealed for calm and told supporters that democracy can not be built on revenge and anger.

Thai officials said they were transferring the Red Shirt leaders to a military camp south of Bangkok for interrogation. Authorities also extended a nighttime curfew in Bangkok and 23 provinces to Saturday morning. Thailand's unrest spread this week to the northeastern cities of Udon Thani and Khon Kaen, where militants carried out arson attacks on government buildings.

Violence in Bangkok has killed at least 82 people and wounded 1,800 others since the Red Shirts began their demonstrations in March.

Street fighting continues in the Thai capital, Bangkok, as anti-government protesters try to push back soldiers who have surrounded their camp. At least 22 people were killed in the last two days and at least 170 wounded.
Gunfire and explosions continued Saturday as protesters for a third day clashed with security forces surrounding their camp.

Saturday afternoon, just north of the protest area, the Thai army spread razor wire and set up checkpoints. They put up signs that read "live fire zone" and urged people not to enter.

The anti-government red shirts set up their own barricades of rubber tires and slowly drove a yellow tanker truck toward the soldiers, until shots were fired. Demonstrators hit the ground and scattered into alleyways.

A few protesters could be seen limping away bleeding, apparently shot, but still defiant. They received medical care from nurses standing by to aid casualties.
Army spokesman Colonel Sansern Kaewkamnerd spoke on national television and said the government regrets the deaths and injuries. He says the army has been trying very hard to use measures to end the protest while avoiding any losses.

Authorities blame the clashes on violent elements among the protesters that they say have fired grenades and guns at soldiers who were forced to return fire. Protesters, however, say soldiers and snipers are aiming to kill them.

The latest violence broke out Thursday after a Thai general supporting the protesters was shot, apparently by a sniper. The protesters have occupied a central commercial district for more than two months, demanding the government step down and allow new elections.

A deal for November elections broke down after protest leaders demanded government leaders face charges for the violent clashes. The government says it expects to restore order within a matter of days.

Saturday evening, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva went on national television and said the security operations are the only way to restore normalcy in the capital. He asked the public to cooperate with security forces.

But Bangkok is looking and sounding increasingly like a war zone. Well into Saturday night, explosions and gunfire could be heard in the city center.

And normally bustling streets near the protest area are empty with shops closed and few people daring to walk on the streets. Most mass transit has been shut down and many highways are closed by the fighting.

Thailand remains tense as troops act to remove anti-government protesters in Bangkok. As the violence mounts in the heart of the capital, many regret the failure of a plan that offered a way for the government and protesters to peacefully resolve their differences.

The gunfire and explosions that reverberated in central Bangkok Friday put to death the hopes created last week. That was when Prime Minister Abhisit Vejajjiva offered a reconciliation plan, which, combined with behind-the-scenes negotiations, seemed to end the threat of new violence between government forces and the red-shirt protesters.

The anti-government rallies at the Rajaprasong commercial area in Bangkok since early April have paralyzed business with massive revenue losses. The government has been under increasing pressure to end them. But the protesters, known as red shirts, refused to leave until Mr. Abhisit called immediate elections.

However, the red-shirt leaders unexpectedly welcomed the prime minister's reconciliation plan, which included elections in November. The city seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

Kraisak Choonhavan, a key member of the governing Democrat Party, said the plan's hopes rested on it being accepted by red shirt leaders, and Mr. Abhisit's willingness to compromise.

"He's willing to compromise to a great extent and that's what he's done," he said. "The shortcomings of the result of the negotiations was quite startling to all of us because they [red-shirt] leaders had set a date for the dismantling of the barricades and move out, the cessation of all violence."

But the red shirts set down additional demands, particularly over the investigation of clashes with security forces on April 10. Their demands eroded faith in reconciliation plan.

No amnesty for Thaksin

And some political analysts here say the two sides failed to agree on an amnesty for Thaksin Shinawatra. The former prime minister, a major supporter of the red shirts, was ousted in a military coup in 2006, and now lives overseas to avoid a prison term for corruption.

On Thursday, the government began to isolate the protest camp, throwing up a tight security cordon around the camp, cutting off telecommunications, and blocking supplies of food and water. That sparked a series of clashes on the streets through the night, and that were continuing Friday night. Scores have been wounded.

Sunai Pasuk, a representative in Thailand for Human Rights Watch, fears the military's strategy could make matters worse.

"To me, in a situation like this and with protesters who are very defiant and agitated, this is an ingredient for disaster," he said. "This is a very dangerous situation that the government needs to operate with extreme care about the rules of [military] engagement. So I am very concerned."

But Sunai says the situation is complicated because moderate red-shirt leaders are reported to have left the movement. Those remaining have advocated more violence to force the government out.

Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political science professor at Chulalongkorn University, says many red shirts remain angry over court decisions that tossed out two elected pro-Thaksin governments in 2008. Their removal opened the way for parliament to make Mr. Abhisit prime minister.

"When you deny, when a substantial number of voters are denied and disenfranchised they will become disillusioned and take action upon themselves," he said.

As a result, Thailand faces its most political violence in almost 20 years, as the military seeks to retake key locations while the red shirts remain defiant - and willing to fight to the end.

Thai security forces and anti-government protesters are engaging in another violent clash in Bangkok's main commercial district, where fighting in recent days has left two people dead and dozens of others wounded.

Loud explosions erupted from the so-called "Red Shirt" protest zone as security forces fired tear gas and live and rubber bullets into the crowd of demonstrators early Friday. Witnesses say some protesters set fire to an empty police bus before fleeing the scene.

Gunshots were heard in the area throughout the night and into the morning, and one building was battered by shells. Businesses and several foreign embassies located in the upscale district have been closed and evacuated. Mass transit systems have been disrupted as services and stations within the affected zone have been shut down. And the government has extended an emergency decree to 15 other provinces in a bid to prevent more protesters traveling to the capital.

Friday's violence was triggered when a dissident general aligned with the Red Shirts was shot in the head and seriously wounded Thursday as security forces began a crackdown on the protesters' encampment. The wounded general, Khattiya Sawasdiphol, better known as "Seh Daeng" or Commander Red, was struck in the temple while being interviewed by a reporter.

He is in a coma at a Bangkok hospital, and its director says it is doubtful he will survive.

Thai security forces have deployed up to 30,000 troops backed by armored personnel carriers as part of an operation to disperse protesters rallying in central Bangkok for the past two months.The unrest which began in early April in Bangkok's Rajprasong commercial and retail area have forced the closure of hundreds of shops, leading to millions of dollars in revenues losses and thousands of jobs at stake.

On Silom Road, largely empty to traffic and closed off in sections, troops were on standby. Ms. Fah, a resident of Silom, backs the presence of the armed forces. Ms. Fah says the Thai people love their soldiers and are happy to have troops in the area, as well as loving the country's monarch.

Key Red Shirt leaders said Friday they would press on with the rally in defiance of a crackdown and are calling for supporters to gather at another venue in Bangkok. That venue, at Rajadamneon Avenue, was the scene of clashes in April between protesters and security forces that left more than 20 people dead and more than 850 others injured.

But divisions have been reported within the Red Shirt leadership, with some core leaders looking to end the rally after initially welcoming a reconciliation plan offering new elections in November. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is said to have withdrawn the early election date.

Many protesters support former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a coup in 2006. Mr. Thaksin was accused by the urban middle class of corruption and abuse of power. But the former leader, who lives outside the country, still commands support among the urban and rural poor through previous populist policies while in power.

A dissident Thai General has been shot and seriously wounded, along with several other people at the site of an anti-government protest in Bangkok. VOA's Daniel Schearf witnessed the shooting which followed a government threat to seal off the protest area to force weeks-long demonstration to end.

Major General Khattiya Sawasdipol was shot in the head while talking to a New York Times newspaper reporter and just as Schearf approached him to ask a question. Seconds later, protest security guards yelled at journalists and on-lookers to stay back as they tried to help the general - also known as Seh Daeng - into a van and to the hospital. After he was driven away, explosions rang out and the protesters, called the Red Shirts, scattered.

One protester, who was trying to get people to leave the area, says soldiers fired a grenade and used live ammunition. The protester said, "A soldier, Thai soldier, he shoot M16 and M79 to Thai people, Red Shirts." But his claims could not be verified in the ensuring chaos.

Thai authorities have accused protesters of hiding guns and grenades. Adding to the confusion immediately following the shooting, demonstrators began lighting fireworks. Some protesters used bamboo poles to break billboard street lights, apparently concerned that snipers would see them.

Earlier in the day, authorities had said they would isolate the protest area using armored vehicles and cut phone connections, water and electricity to pressure the protest to end. A spokesman said the army would also deploy snipers to look for what he called armed "terrorists."

General Seh Daeng was one of the more militant supporters of the anti-government protest. Some accused him of trying to form a paramilitary force among the protesters. Because of his support of the protest, he was suspended from the army and had a warrant out for his arrest.

Authorities have issued arrest warrants for many of the protest leaders who have been labeled "terrorists," after April clashes with security forces that killed more than 20 people.

The protesters have been occupying a central commercial area of Bangkok for two months, demanding that the government, which they say is illegitimate, step down and allow elections.

The government withdrew an offer for early elections in November after protest leaders demanded that officials also face charges for the deaths of protesters.

Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has ruled out a compromise offer by anti-government protest leaders for parliament to be dissolved with elections to be held in 90 days. In a televised address Sunday, with army chief General Anupong Paochinda at his side, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva dismissed an offer by the anti-government protesters for parliament to be dissolved in 30 days. He said such issues could not be resolved in such a short period of time. Mr. Abhisit said the government stood by an offer made during earlier talks with the anti-government United Democratic Front against Dictatorship for the house to be dissolved within the next nine months. In reaction, the UDD maintained an earlier call for parliament to be dissolved immediately. The UDD also withdrew from any further negotiations with the government. UDD leaders have repeatedly warned supporters rallying in central Bangkok's retail and business area of the threat of a new government crackdown. General Anupong said a crackdown was not expected to solve the current problems, which, he said, called for a political solution. A Thai Army spokesman dismissed reports the use of force had been ruled out as an option to end rallies that have slowly paralyzed key business areas of the city. The on-going crisis has led to growing numbers of pro-government rallies. Amnat Ngamturiodo, a governments supporter, said both sides needed to step back to ease rising tensions. "Right now our Thai (nation is) breaking into groups and they have a lot of different ideas and they did not listen to each other so it takes time for us to calm down and set up the (new) parliament," Amnat said. The UDD-led protests are largely supporting former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Mr. Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 coup and fled overseas to avoid a two year jail term for corruption. Thailand is facing its most severe political crisis in almost 20 years with the anti-government rallies stoking deep social and political divisions. The UDD claims Mr. Abhisit's government is without legitimacy after two pro-Thaksin administrations were ruled out by court decisions. Mr. Abhisit said he will step aside if he is unable to find a solution.

In a new setback to the Thai government's efforts to ease mounting political tensions, protest leaders escaped from their hotel Friday after security forces arrived to arrest them. One, Arisman Pongruangrong, climbed down three floors using a rope, and was rushed away by supporters thronging the building. The police say Arisman led recent rallies at the national parliament, the election commission and satellite transmission bases. Officials earlier Friday said the government is preparing to arrest people linked to violent clashes with security forces last Saturday. A spokesman for the governing Democrat Party, Baranuj Smuthararaks, says arrest warrants have been issued for those suspected of being involved in the violence. Some of the suspects have been identified from photos taking during the clashes. "Right now the government's focusing on issuing warrants for acts of terrorism by the people who fortunately have been captured in action [in photos] by both the local and international media," he said. The government says armed men infiltrated protester ranks Saturday and fired on troops trying to disperse a rally. Five soldiers and 19 protesters died during the clashes. Thailand is facing its most severe political crisis in almost 20 years. The anti-government movement, led by the United Democratic Front against Dictatorship or UDD, demands that the government step down and call fresh elections. UDD supporters, known as red shirts, have held protests in Bangkok for more than a month. The UDD largely supports former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a coup in 2006 and remains overseas to avoid a jail sentence for corruption. Mr. Thaksin has strong support among the rural and urban poor, as well among some sections of the army and police. Some parties in the governing coalition want to set a clear time frame for elections to ease tensions. But the government says it will only call elections once the political situation has cooled.