Five Buddhists in southern Thailand have become the latest victims of a years-long struggle between the government and Malay Muslims fighting for autonomy in the Buddhist-dominated country.
Police say gunmen opened fire on the five Thursday while they were sitting outside a store in Pattani province.
Pattani is one of three Muslim-majority provinces in the south where more than 4,300 have been killed since the insurgency began in 2004. The region has been plagued by several deadly attacks in recent weeks, including a bold assault on a military base last Saturday.
