3 bombs in southern Thailand wound 62

It was the largest attack in months in Thailand's restive south, which has been gripped by a Muslim insurgency since 2004.

Two bombs exploded in the parking lot of a fruit market in Narathiwat province at about noon local time (0500 GMT), followed minutes later by a third bomb outside a tea shop in the same province, said Narathiwat police chief Maj. Gen. Surachai Suebsuk.

Cell phone signals were cut off in the area to prevent attackers from triggering new explosions by mobile phone, he said.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the blasts.

Violence in the south is usually blamed on Muslim insurgents. The southernmost provinces of Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani have been terrorized by regular attacks since early 2004, when a separatist movement flared after a lull of more than two decades.

Attacks generally take the form of drive-by shootings and small-scale bombings intended to frighten Buddhist residents into leaving the area. Suspected insurgents mainly target people seen as collaborating with the government, including soldiers, police, informants and civilians.

More than 3,300 people have been killed since January 2004 in the three provinces, which are the only Muslim-dominated areas in the Buddhist-majority country.

Thailand's population is about 90 percent Buddhist, and many of the country's Muslims feel they are treated as second-class citizens.

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