The commander of the operation, a lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Thai army, on the west side of Naowarat bridge of Chiang Mai, and his men. A line of policemen with riot shields stand in front of the soldiers facing protesters, their sympathisers and onlookers on the east side of the bridge. The soldiers and police await the arrival of soldiers coming from the north over the road east along the Ping river to disperse the protesters from where the fire is and where the damaged fire trucks are. The commander said that the shotguns contained only rubber bullets. Only a small group soldiers, standing to the side and apparently only there in case they were needed, had automatic rifles with live rounds. The whole operation to disperse the few "red shirts", and the crowd of sympathisers and onlookers, went smoothly without any force being used on the side of the authorities.
<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Takeaway" title="User:Takeaway">Takeaway</a>
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