* OIC condemns mosque massacre * Three killed in attacks in Narathiwat (Releads with OIC statement) By Kittipong Soonprasert BANGKOK, June 11 (Reuters) - The head of the world's biggest Islamic body has urged Thailand to protect its Muslim minority and apprehend those behind a deadly attack on a mosque in the country's restive deep south. Ekmeleddin Ihssanoglu, secretary-general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), called for a full probe of Monday's attack in the southern province of Narathiwat, where gunmen burst into a mosque and killed 10 people as they prayed. "This tragic incident falls within a string of aggressions conducted by armed and organised elements that have targeted worshippers and worship venues...in a bid to terrorise Muslims and restrain them from demanding their legitimate rights," Ihssanoglu said in a statement. Thailand has blamed separatist insurgents for the bloodiest attack this year in the mainly Muslim region bordering Malaysia, where nearly 3,500 people have died in violence since 2004. The Foreign Ministry bristled at the OIC's statement, accusing it of "drawing premature conclusions about the identities and nature of this attack". It said the OIC's response "could mislead the general public and further exacerbate the situation as the true identities of the perpetrators have not yet been established". - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For a Q+A on the insurgency click on [ID:nBKK463005] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The diplomatic war of words came as violence erupted again in the region, where 23 people have been killed and more than 40 wounded over the past six days. Three people, including a pregnant woman, were shot dead by unknown gunmen on Thursday in Narathiwat. A Buddhist man and his four-months pregnant wife were killed and an elderly woman wounded in a drive-by shooting. Separately, a Muslim man was killed by gunfire from a passing truck. Mystery surrounds who is behind the violence in the southernmost provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala, once part of a Malay Muslim sultanate until annexed by Buddhist Thailand a century ago. Villagers living around the Al-Furquan mosque blamed security forces for Monday's attack, which they said no Muslim was capable of carrying out. The military has rejected the charge and said insurgents were seeking to escalate the conflict by stoking hatred between Muslims and Buddhists. Narathiwat police chief, Major General Surachai Suebsook, said an investigation into the shooting was progressing, but no arrests had been made. "This is a sensitive issue. The forensic evidence will show that our investigation is transparent," he said. (Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Darren Schuettler and Sanjeev Miglani)
A Myanmar national living in Thailand shouts slogans and holds portraits of pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi during a rally calling for Suu Kyi's release, outside the Myanmar embassy in ...
