BANGKOK, June 8 (UPI) -- Gunmen opened fire on worshipers in a mosque in southern Thailand Monday night, killing at least 10 people and wounding more, police said.
A local police official told the state-run Chinese news agency Xinhua by telephone that in addition to those killed, 13 were wounded.
The attack by five armed men occurred about 10:30 p.m. local time in a mosque in the village of Ibaye in Narathiwat province.
"They opened fire indiscriminately at about 50 worshipers inside the mosque," the official told Xinhua. "Ten people were killed, including the local imam."
Security officials said they believed gunmen, who fled into nearby woods, were insurgents bent on instigating conflict between Muslims and Buddhists, Xinhua said.
Earlier in the day, suspected insurgents attacked a military unit in the province, killing one villager and seven soldiers. Thailand's southern region has been plagued by insurgency, with more than 3,500 people killed since January 2004.
