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The blast happened as the children had gathered to watch television in a nearby house

Two men parked the motorbike in front of the house, ostensibly to target a group of soldiers who were expected to patrol the area, police said. The bomb, detonated by remote control, injured one soldier who was on patrol, and seven children aged under ten who were watching television inside the house. All of them were admitted to a Yala hospital.

Yala Governor Theera Minthrasak condemned the attackers, saying that if they were Islamic militants, the act against innocent children absolutely violated Islamic principles.

"Islamic doctrine says killing a single innocent person is equal to killing every human being in the whole world," he said, "We should not forgive them for this action and I condemn them."

A string of bombings have occurred since late last week in the deep South, killing at least three people and injuring dozens of others. A car bomb at the SC Pattani Hotel killed two people and another one in downtown Yala killed a man believed to be the bomber himself.

Authorities have been struggling to contain the violence, which erupted in the predominantly Muslim region since the beginning of 2004 and has killed more than 2,000 people so far. Militants are employing more sophisticated tactics in orchestrating the violence. They used car-bombs when officials were focused on motorbikes, and when officials started checking all cars travelling in the provinces, they returned to using motorbikes again.

Deputy Commander of Yala Special Task Force Colonel Shinawat Mandej said from now on officials on the ground have been instructed to check and search all kind of vehicles to prevent further bombings.

 "The militants aim at soft targets to discredit the authorities for failing to protect civilians," he said.

Security expert Panitan Wattan-ayagorn said the car bombs at the Pattani hotel and in Yala province last week indicated the nature of violence in the deep South was changing since the number of militants and their supporters has decreased due to massive numbers of arrests. The militants have changed tactics and are using more powerful means such as car-bombs to show their capability, he said.

The attack at the Pattani hotel was worrying since it has long been a place for all sides to gather for meetings, he said.

The Nation