Dangers in Thailand

There are no known indigenous terrorist or rebel groups directly hostile to the U.S. in Thailand. Visitors should exercise caution if traveling near border areas with Burma, Malaysia and Cambodia, due to banditry, drug smuggling and separatist violence. Persons with known transnational terrorist associations transit through and visit Thailand with relative ease through legal and illegal means. These travel routes include not only the Burmese and Cambodian borders, but also the Malaysian border. Soft target vulnerabilities exist throughout the country; a situation that could easily be exploited by transnational terrorist elements if they begin operations here.

The far south of Thailand continues to experience daily incidents of criminally and politically motivated violence directed against Thai authorities by armed local separatist/ extremist groups. These groups have targeted Thai government interests, including government schools, courts and local security forces. Although there is no information indicating that these groups have targeted westerners, American citizens have been victims of this indiscriminate violence, as was the case in April 2005, when two Americans were injured by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that detonated at the Hat Yai International Airport in southern Thailand. For this reason, the State Department urges all American citizens to defer non-emergency travel to Thailand's southernmost four provinces including Songkhla, Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat.