YALA — Thai authorities have arrested 22 suspects in connection with a three-day spate of bombings in the southern border province of Yala that injured nearly 20 people last month.

According to Col. Isra Chantakrayom, commander of the 41st Ranger Division, security officers tracked down the suspects using CCTV footage and witnesses' testimonies.

Thai firemen and volunteers try to extinguish a fire after a bomb attack in Yala, southern Thailand, 06 April 2014.  EPA/NAKHARIN CHINNAWORNKOMOL

The bombings, which rocked Yala between 14 – 16 May, injured 18 people, including children. Police say at least 56 homemade explosives were detonated throughout the weekend.

Although the explosions themselves were relatively small, the incident was one of the most coordinated attacks to strike the insurgent-torn region in recent months.

Col. Isra said the 22 suspects, who were arrested on 2 June, have not been formally charged wiht a crime, except for one man who already had a pre-existing arrest warrant on him for separate charges. 

"As for the detention of these 22 suspects, I insist that we will quickly interrogate them, and once the interrogation determines that they are not related to the incident, they will be immediately released," Col. Isra explained. "Their relatives have already have been informed."

Col. Isra also told reporters that three suspects have already confessed to their involvement in the May bombings, but he declined to provide further details, citing classified information. 

The Muslim-majority southern provinces of Yala, Narathiwat, and Pattani – a region known as the Deep South – have been plagued by a bloody Islamic insurgency for the past decade. The insurgents are seeking to revive the Islamic state of Patani, which was annexed by Thailand in the early 20th century. 

Near-daily bomb attacks and shootings have claimed the lives of more than 6,200 people since the most recent waves of secessionist violence broke out in January 2004. 

BANGKOK — The construction of a new railway in Thailand that will ultimately connect with a route to China will begin before the end of this year, according to a spokesperson of the Thai military government.

Maj.Gen. Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the railway – which will service “medium speed” trains – will run between Thailand's eastern seaboard and Nong Khai province, which borders Laos in the northeast. The railroad will connect with another train route also being built by the Chinese government in Laos, ultimately linking Thailand and China by train.

"We are currently preparing the fifth joint committee meeting between Thailand and China by the end of June. Route surveys and cost estimations will be finished by August as planned," Maj.Gen. Sansern said. "We expect that construction will begin within year 2015." 

He added, "This project will benefit the increase of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, and stimulate economic development in the entire region."

In a memorandum of understanding signed between the two governments in December 2014, China pledged to help build the Eastern Seaboard – Nong Khai rail and a separate route that will connect it with Bangkok. The two rail lines will cover a total of 873 kilometers and run "medium speed" trains at 180 kilometer per hour, Maj.Gen. Sansern said. 

Thailand’s train services, which are solely operated by the State Railway of Thailand, have long been criticized for poor maintenance, delays, and frequent accidents. 

According to Maj.Gen. Sansern, Japanese rail companies will also develop two high-speed rails between Bangkok and the northern city of Chiang Mai, and Kanchanaburi and Sa Kaeo provinces, though no schedule for the construction has been released. The two governments signed an MOU on the project on 27 May. 

"Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, the Prime Minister, has a clear policy in cooperating with our allied countries, as seen in the construction of Thai-Chinese railway, and investment in rail by Japanese companies," Maj.Gen. Sansern told reporters. 

In 2012, the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra announced a 2.2 trillion baht project aimed at overhauling Thailand's infrastructure and rail services by 2020. The plan called for constructing high-speed railways connecting Bangkok with other major cities.

The proposal came under intense scrutiny from opposition politicians, who balked at the hefty price tag, and warned that the project would pave the way for massive corruption. In March 2014, the Constitutional Court nullified the bill that was drafted to seek a loan for the project, citing irregularities in the legislation. One of the judges also described the rail project as unnecessary and urged the government to get rid of "dirt roads" in the country first. 

The government was later toppled in a coup d'etat staged by Gen. Prayuth in May 2014.  

BANGKOK — In an effort to extradite lese majeste suspects living abroad, Thailand’s military government will inform foreign ambassadors that insulting the monarchy is a criminal offense, not a political one.

Gen. Paiboon Khumchaya, Minister of Justice, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will explain to diplomats from countries where fugitives are residing that the suspects need to be brought back to Thailand for criminal prosecution.

According to the general, 31 people charged with lese majeste are currently in exile, with 14 of them living in neighboring Laos.

"They have to understand that this wrongdoing is not a political issue, but a criminal wrongdoing," Gen. Paipoon said. "I have already instructed the Ministry [of Foreign Affairs] to create understanding about each suspect's legal case before proceeding, because in some countries there is no law related to insulting the monarchy."

In Thailand, criticizing the monarchy is punishable by up to 15 years in prison under Section 112 of the Thai Criminal Codes, a law known as lese majeste. 

Although discussing the monarchy has long been taboo in Thailand, the ruling military junta has enforced the country's lese majeste law with new vigor since seizing power in a coup in May 2014. The junta is led by Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, a former army chief and hardline royalist. 

Since the coup, at least 46 people have been charged with lese majeste, and more than half of them have been denied bail while they await trial, according to iLaw, a watchdog group that tracks legal cases in Thailand.  

Critics and human rights groups say Thailand's lese majeste law – the strictest of its kind in the world – is used to suppress free speech and smear political opponents.

Amnesty International, for instance, recognizes those convicted of lese majeste in Thailand as "prisoners of conscience." 

"Amnesty International considers all those who have been jailed solely for peacefully expressing their opinions to be prisoners of conscience, who should be released immediately and unconditionally," Rupert Abbott, AI's Research Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said in February 2015. "The lese majeste law should be amended so that it complies with Thailand's international legal obligations, including under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights." 

King back in hospital 

King Bhumibol, 87, is widely revered as a demigod in Thailand and often credited with bringing stability to the Kingdom during his 68 years on the throne.

However, his frail health is a source of anxiety for many Thais, the majority of whom have never lived under another monarch. 

On 31 May, His Majesty the King returned to Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok for what the palace said was a routine medical check-up following his six-month stay at the hospital earlier this year. 

He was admitted with a high fever in October 2014, and later underwent a surgery to remove his infected gallbladder, according to the palace. His Majesty returned to his summer palace in Prachuap Kiri Khan province on 10 May.