Suit filed against soldiers over ‘execution’

Published on July 26, 2005

The Yala Provincial Court yesterday accepted a lawsuit filed against five soldiers who allegedly shot dead a young Muslim man last year after mistaking him for an insurgent.

The suit was filed by the parents of Ilmin Nuruladil, who was killed in Yala on September 6.

The man’s parents alleged the five soldiers shot their son execution style after first forcing him to lie face down on a road.

Asmin Nuruladil, Ilmin’s father and a lawyer, said his son had accompanied his uncle to settle a personal conflict with a teacher on the day he was killed.

He said Ilmin’s uncle had argued with the teacher, resulting in the teacher firing a single shot at the uncle. The bullet missed the uncle and wounded a janitor, he said.

Asmin said Ilmin and his uncle ran away from the scene but were rounded up by the soldiers, who apparently mistook them for insurgents.

He alleges Ilmin was shot after he and his uncle were apprehended.

The soldiers have defended themselves by saying that Ilmin fired at them first and they shot him in self-defence. Asmin said the provincial court initially declined to accept the suit, saying it should be filed with the military court as soldiers were involved.

But later the provincial court and military court set up a joint committee to study the case and the committee ruled the civilian court should handle it, he said.

Asmin said the provincial court had set the preliminary hearing for August 29.

Meanwhile in Narathiwat, a civilian employee of the Southern Border Provinces Peace-building Command was shot dead at a village coffee shop located in front of a school in Rangae district at 11.30am yesterday.

Manoong Nimasu, 38, was shot four times in the head and body by a man riding pillion on a motorcycle.

Lt-Colonel Manote Ananritthikul, deputy commander of Rangae district police station, quoted eyewitnesses as saying Manoong was drinking tea when two men arrived at the shop on a motorcycle.

The passenger then walked up to Manoong and fired at him, killing him at the scene, Manote said.

The Nation

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