GUNSHOTS, blasts and as many as 10 reds injured were reported tonight. M-79 grenades had been fired at Saladaeng, close to the red redoubt in Bangkok, Thai TV said. The reports came about 7.30pm.
7.50pm Phuket's red leader Sunthorn Toema confirmed to Phuketwan that renegade red Major General Khattiya ''Seh Daeng'' (Commander Red) Sawasdipol was among the wounded and in hospital. Fifteen of Thailand's 76 provinces have declared states of emergency, Thai TV said.
8pm Police say Major General ''Seh Daeng,'' among the reds' most outspoken strategists and radical leaders, is dead from a shot to the head. Later reports say he remains alive but in intensive care.
8.10pm Reds in the province of Korat say they will attack Provincial Hall and the home of General Prem Tinsulanonda, Thailand's Chief Privy Councillor and a key adviser to HM The King. The Korat reds say they plan to block the main highway that connects all the northern Isarn provinces to Bangkok.
8.20pm a Thai TV reporter says that ''Seh Daeng'' had been shot in the back of the head about 6.30pm. The government declared earlier that soldiers and snipers would use live ammunition and target ''terrorists.''
8.50pm Normal television programming is interrupted to declare the state of emergency. A female announcer reads the announcement in a long message, shown on screen.
The announcer also says electricity, water and all transport services are to be cut immediately to the red protesters' area in central Bangkok. Telephone services are also to be cut.
8.59pm Television news footage shows for the first time the major general being taken to hospital, followed by a media crush.
9.20pm Doctors are reported to be debating whether ''Seh Daeng'' is in a condition where he can be operated on. His only daughter arrives at the hospital.
10.05pm The BBC reports that 20 people have been injured or wounded, but the red Bangkok camp is quiet as people consider the ramifications of the shooting of the major general.
10.20pm Television footage is screened for the first time showing the major general slumping, shot during an interview.


Cowardly assassination attempts seldom achieve progress. Whether he survives or not, Major General Seh Daeng will be perceived as a martyr to the red cause. It is now more difficult than ever to imagine a peaceful ending to the confrontation. Once again, the government has begun an action in darkness against the protest, and once again the action has ended in bloodshed.


AFTER more than two months on the streets of Bangkok, Phuket red shirt leader Sunthorn Toema was not planning to move out to beat tonight's 6pm deadline, even if he could see armored vehicles on the other side of the barricade.

''We are not scared of the army,'' he said. ''We do not have bombs or guns, but we are ready to fight if we have to.''

Nervous anticipation was building inside and around the red redoubt with all the latest indications pointing towards a showdown soon.

Khun Sunthorn, who has been in Bangkok since March 12, said there were about 30,000 people inside the red barricades. His estimates, though, have been in the past considerably higher than those of onlookers.

Darkness may bring increased concern. In the army's first bungled attempt to shift the protesters on April 10, more than 20 people died and in the aftermath, national travel alerts seriously damaged Thailand tourism.

The government's plans are not yet plain but it's almost certain that the reds will resist any attempt to shift them. A nearby hospital is ready to treat injured and workers in nearby buildings have been told to extend today's public holiday to tomorrow.

Schools in Bangkok around the area under siege are due to resume next week, so it's likely the government will be keen to shift the reds before Monday.