Thai security forces stand guard near the body of a village defence volunteer who was gunned down by suspected separatist rebels while riding his motorcycle in Yala province, southern Thailand, September 9, 2010. The man was the latest of more than 4,100 killed and nearly 8,000 wounded since January 2004 in Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani provinces bordering Malaysia, once an independent Malay-Muslim sultanate that was annexed by Buddhist Thailand in 1909. (Reuters)

Thai security personnel inspect the site of a bomb blast in Yala province, southern Thailand, September 9, 2010. The bomb was detonated after security forces arrived to investigate the murder of a man, believed to have been killed by separatists. No one was injured in the blast, according to police. More than 4,100 people have been killed and nearly 8,000 wounded in violence blamed on separatist militants since January 2004 in Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani provinces bordering Malaysia, once an independent Malay-Muslim sultanate that was annexed by Buddhist Thailand in 1909. (Reuters)