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ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Uighur-on-watch-list-visited-Thailand-twice-30284383.html

TERRORISM

Suriya Pathatayo,
Jitraporn Senwong,
Natthapat Phromkaew
The Nation April 21, 2016 1:00 am

ONE OF the three Uighurs on a special watch list visited Thailand twice last month, Immigration Bureau chief Pol Lt-General Nattorn Prohsunthorn disclosed yesterday.

The man in question was identified as Ali Yalcin Ergin, a 36-year-old Turkish passport holder. A source has claimed that Ergin was allegedly plotting to attack Chinese interests in the Asean region.

Nattorn explained that Ergin first flew into Thailand from Singapore on March 18 on an AirAsia flight, spent four days here and then took an AirAsia flight to Cambodia.

“Records show that two days later, he again took an AirAsia flight back to Thailand, and spent four days here,” he said.

In his second trip, he said, Ergin went to Phuket from where he took a flight to Kuala Lumpur.

“Officials have checked the places he stayed at in Thailand – one is in the Sukhumvit Soi 16 area and the other in Phuket town,” he said.

According to Nattorn, Ergin was travelling with a companion, also a Turkish national. According to immigration regulations, Turkish nationals are exempt from visa requirements.

A source said the National Intelligence Agency had alerted the Immigration Bureau to keep an eye out for three radical ethnic Uighur Turkish passport holders – Ergin, Hid Yet Dursan and Ali Talcin.

“They are apparently plotting to attack Chinese interests in the Asean region,” the source said.

Nattorn added that the three Uighurs were already on the Immigration Bureau database and in its watch list.

“If Ergin travels to Thailand again, we will immediately be alerted,” he said. “So far, his companion is not on the special watch list.”

Last year, the Erawan Shrine in the heart of Bangkok was hit with a powerful bomb, causing a huge number of casualties. Investigators found links to Uighur and Turkish suspects.

General Thawip Netniyom, secretary-general of the National Security Council, said Singapore had issued a warning about the three Uighurs.

“We got the warning on April 19,” he said.

Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan, who is also deputy prime minister overseeing security affairs, has tried to downplay the warning.

“It’s an old issue,” he said.

Colonel Phirawat Saengthong, spokesman of the Internal Security Operations Command, said security agencies were closely monitoring the international-terrorism situation but had detected no plots against the people and places in Thailand. However, he said, hotels and tourism operators as well as the general public should watch out for the country.

Police have manes, details but not pictures of two who sneaked out of Thailand.

POLICE HAVE not detected the two alleged Uighur terror suspects who are believed to have entered Malaysia from Thailand, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said yesterday.

“We are not sure, as we have their names and their details but not their pictures,” Khalid said.

He was responding to a Bernama report that two Turks of Uighur descent, suspected of plotting terrorist attacks in Thailand, had left for Malaysia.

It was reported last week that Malaysian authorities were on high alert after information from Thailand that the two were heading to the neighbouring country.

Surat Thani Governor Wongsiri Promchana, who disclosed this information to Bernama last Saturday, said he was informed of the two men’s recent departure for Malaysia by Phuket’s Immigration Office.

“We have exchanged information among the relevant agencies and the Phuket Immigration Office has informed me that they found the names of the two Uighurs in the immigration system, showing that they left the Kingdom for Malaysia,” he said.

The governor’s leaked memorandum identified the two Uighurs as Ali Yalcin Egin and Hidayet Dorsun, who arrived in Phuket from an unidentified location on March 23.

The leaked memo alleged that the duo “may stage attacks on Chinese targets and interests in Southeast Asia”. It also alleged that two Chechens – who were not identified – planned to attack Russian interests in Thailand.

Last week, Royal Thai Police chief General Chakthip Chaijinda said the leaked intelligence memo was real and the force had been working on the information secretly for the past week.

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was quoted saying on Sunday that the two were actually economic refugees.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also the home minister, said at the time that Malaysia had received information from Interpol, as well as Chinese national security authorities, about this intelligence memo issued by the Phuket Immigration Office.

The names of the two Uighurs were believed to be the same as those in a leaked intelligence memo, which had claimed that the duo and two Russians of Chechen descent were plotting terror attacks in Thailand.

Last December, Russia’s intelligence agency reportedly warned its Thai counterpart that up to 10 Syrian members of the Daesh group of militants, also known as Islamic State, had entered the Kingdom to attack Russian interests. Thai authorities confirmed there were some documents circulating among security agencies but failed to verify the content of the papers.