Rare armed clashes in Laos believed to be linked to drug smuggling have forced Thailand to close a popular mountain viewing point on the border and prompted a security warning from the United States.
Thai authorities announced on Monday that the Phu Chi Fa viewpoint, located near the Lao border in northern Chiang Rai province, will remain closed indefinitely.
The U.S. embassy in Vientiane advised Americans contemplating travel to Bokeo Province to reconsider following reports of “conflicts between the Laotian military and unknown armed factions.”
“The local authorities have called for heightened security measures, encompassing more military checkposts and increased soldier deployment,” according to the embassy’s website.
Discontent is uncommon in Laos, but the nation is part of the Golden Triangle—encompassing the borders with Myanmar and Thailand—that has long served as a key center for the profitable drug trafficking industry across Southeast Asia.
State-run
Lao National Radio
On Tuesday, reports emerged about a clash between border patrol officers and drug traffickers in Bokeo on Saturday, resulting in the arrest of four individuals.
The report stated that several border patrol officers were injured and killed during the skirmishes but did not provide specific information.
The police in Laos did not reply to the inquiries.
AFP
‘s request for comment.
Suphakorn Phromcharoen, who leads the police force in Thailand’s Wiang Kaen district, near the site where the conflicts occurred, stated
AFP
that at least one stray bullet had hit a house on the Thai side of the border.
Thai authorities estimate that at least one soldier may have been killed and more than a dozen wounded.
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