April 8, 2013: The initial round of peace talks with Islamic terrorists got both sides to present their demands, and the talks will continue later this month. The fighting has been going on in the south for nearly a decade, and most southern Moslems are tired of it. So are some of the separatist groups that supported (and participated) in the Islamic terrorism. But some of the militant factions do not want to negotiate, they insist on continuing the fight until the three largely Moslem southern provinces are free from Thailand and recognized as an independent Islamic state. Thailand refuses to consider this but is willing to negotiate for more autonomy.

April 7, 2013: Islamic terrorists have resumed beheading victims as troops found another man killed and decapitated in the south. This is the first time this has happened since last August. Only about one percent of the deaths in the south are beheadings, and this is done to emulate Islamic terrorists use of this tactic elsewhere. This sort of thing angered and appalled many southern Moslems.

April 5, 2013: The government agreed to become the first foreign user of the Chinese GPS system. Called Beidou, China has been gradually bringing Beidou to life over the last five years. It began public use in China earlier this year. China will invest $322 million in Thailand on Beidou facilities and to promote use of Beidou.

Troops near the Burma (Myanmar) border could hear a gun battle on the other side. This was an ambush by tribal rebels that left 13 Burmese soldiers dead. Thai troops were asked by Burma to carefully monitor their side of the border for any tribal rebels seeking to escape the Burmese troops searching for the ambushers.

In the south two senior provincial officials were killed by a roadside bomb.

April 1, 2013: In the south a marine was kidnapped from his home and later found murdered. This was apparently a revenge attack by Islamic terrorists who were angry at how a recent attack on a military base had failed in a spectacular manner.

March 30, 2013: In the south a roadside bomb killed two soldiers and wounded four others.

March 28, 2013: The first round of peace talks with Islamic rebels ended without much to show for it, except an agreement to meet again in a month to talk again. The peace negotiations are held in Malaysia.

In the south a roadside bomb killed three paramilitary (local defense) soldiers.

March 22, 2013: A fire broke out in a refugee camp near the Burmese border and left 37 dead. Police suspect arson. The camp holds over 13,000 Burmese tribal people who have fled the fighting in Burma between troops and tribal rebels. These camps have been in this area since the 1990s.