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Anti-government protesters break into Thai army compound

29 November 2013 19:20 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Anti-government protesters briefly forced their way into the compound of Thailand's army headquarters on Friday in a dramatic escalation of city-wide demonstrations seeking to topple Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, APA reports quoting Reuters.

Protesters burst into the army base Bangkok's historic quarter, waving flags and blowing whistles. In another district, about 1,000 people massed outside Yingluck's ruling party headquarters, shouting "get out".

The invasion of army headquarters deepened a conflict broadly pitting the urban middle class against the mostly rural supporters of Yingluck and her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister who was ousted in a 2006 coup and who remains central to Thailand's eight years of on-off turmoil.

The demonstrators left the headquarters peacefully after a few hours and late on Friday, protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban told his supporters to increase the pressure and target main state buildings on Sunday, including the headquarters of city and police, four ministries and Government House, Yingluck's offices.

"Don't wait for anyone. Every heart that loves this country must stand up together and execute our mission as one," Suthep told a crowd of 7,000 massed outside a state office complex.

"On Sunday, brothers and sisters, we will announce our victory and our defeat of the Thaksin regime."

The protesters accuse Yingluck of abusing her party's parliamentary majority to push through laws that strengthen the behind-the-scenes power of her populist self-exiled, billionaire brother. They have rejected her calls for talks.

Although the army moved its main command centre to a military camp in Bangkok's northern suburbs three days ago, the siege of its grounds by protesters is deeply symbolic and highlights the military's pivotal role in a country that has seen 18 successful or attempted coups in the past 80 years.

After forcing open the compound's gates, protesters swarmed inside, demanding the generals choose sides as hundreds of soldiers watched from the balconies of the 19th-century cream-colored building.