Bangkok Post – Malaysia to deploy elite force to Thai border to fight crime

Malaysia will assign a special force to take charge of the guard of the border with Sungai Kolok district in Narathiwat from Sunday as the neighboring country takes serious measures against smuggling and other cross-border trafficking. crimes.

Kelantan state police chief Mohd Yusoff Mamat said at least 90 Senoi Praaq members will be stationed along the border opposite the Thai district starting Sunday, when the elite unit will take over from the regular police to lead the border force mission. force, Bernama reported Monday.

Senoi Praaq has British staff trained by SAS. He was once nicknamed “the silent killer” by the United States Central Intelligence Agency when they were deployed to Laos during the Indochina War, according to the New Strait Times.

The decision to use the elite police team, which received the green light from the Malaysian National Police chief, would underline Kelantan’s determination to end smuggling and other crimes prevalent along its border with Thailand.

The timetable is in line with Malaysia’s decision on Sunday to begin arresting all its citizens using illegal border crossings as they return to the border town of Rantau Panjang from Thailand’s Sungai Kolok district.

“The issue of leaks (in smuggling) and abuse of power (corruption) at the national border will be controlled, including at the northern border,” the Malaysian news agency quoted the commander of Kelantan Police.

Hamzah Ishak, deputy director-general of the Malaysian National Security Council, has warned all Malaysian citizens that only three checkpoints in Kelantan are allowed for travel between his state and Narathiwat province, according to another Bernama article published on Sunday.

Both countries operate three checkpoints between Kelantan and Narathiwat. These are Tak Bai and Penkalan Kubor district, Sungai Kolok and Rantau Panjang, as well as Waeng and Bukit Bunga district. The Sungai Kolok-Rantau Panjang crossing is the main link between the two countries and the second busiest checkpoint after Sadao district in Songkhla province and Bukit Hitam in Kedah state.