Two bomb blasts in southern Thailand, one dead

BANGKOK, Monday (Reuters) Two bombs exploded in Thailand's restive Muslim-majority south on Monday, killing one man and wounding three, police said, the latest violence in the region where more than 700 people have been killed in 18 months.

A bomb hidden in a garbage truck exploded when it was driving past Sungai Padi police station in the province of Narathiwat, along the Malaysian border, killing one of the garbage workers and injuring two others, police said.

A policeman parking his motorcycle near the road was also injured.

Two hours earlier, a bomb blew up outside a bank in nearby Waeng district, although nobody was injured, police said.

The government has imposed martial law in parts of the three southernmost provinces to curb the violence, which first erupted in January 2004 when gunmen raided army barracks. Shootings, bombings and arson attacks have since become daily occurrences.