The three provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat once formed the heart of an independent Malay Muslim sultanate.

ECONOMIST: But at last the government is listening

On April 30th the prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, paid a visit to Pattani, promising to do more to help restore peace.

ECONOMIST: An insurgency worsens as the government promises peace

The three southern provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat were annexed to Siam, as Thailand was then known, more than a century ago.

BBC: Militants killed in southern Thailand attack

While Thailand's most senior Muslim cleric, Sawat Sumalayasak, said the army's actions had been reasonable under the circumstances, a local Muslim leader in Pattani, Uma Meah, criticised the attack on the mosque, saying the militants could have been captured alive if the security forces had shown patience.

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