TROOPS moved on a ''sideshow'' protest in Bangkok today, apparently intent on dispersing red supporters who had gathered in Lumpini Park, not far from Bangkok's Silom financial district.

Red protesters set fire to a police bus outside the local police station in retaliation. While troops were today active on the streets of Bangkok, Phuket remains a safe destination for tourists with many chosing to reach the island via direct flights or through Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

A small number of protesters from Phuket are among the reds in Bangkok. Today's violence was limited to a small area in central Bangkok, close to the American and Japanese embassies, which were closed, Associated Press reported.

A journalist from the 'France 24' news outlet and a Thai photographer were among more than 30 people treated at hospitals for injuries, mostly not serious.

The British, US, New Zealand and the Dutch embassies, which are in the vicinity, chose to close today, along with Macdonalds, Starbucks and the Foreign Correspondents Club.

A demonstrator was shot dead in Lumpini Park last night, soon after the shooting in the head of radical red strategist Major General ''Seh Daeng'' (Red Commander) Khattiya Sawasdipol during a media interview, apparently by a sniper.

The army seems to have decided to clear Lumpini Park, possibly as a prelude to moving on the main red encampment in downtown Bangkok that is barricaded by tyres and bamboo stakes.

Seventeen schools around the red protest area in Bangkok were to reopen on Monday but the students have now been given extra time off until May 1, it was announced.

Elsewhere, reds were reportedly preparing to launch an attack on the local administrative Provincial Hall building in Chiang Rai, a key province in northern Thailand. According to one online news site, the reds also planned to attack the Bangkok Bank because it was perceived to be pro-government.

The state of emergency declared around Bangkok was extended to 15 other provinces yesterday. Red protesters took to the streets of Bangkok on March 12 and a major army action to dislodge them on April 10 led to more than 20 deaths and hundreds of injured. Sporadic incidents since have killed several more civilians and police.

General ''Seh Daeng'' remains in a coma in a critical condition overnight after surgery to remove a bullet. A representative of the army today denied involvement in the shooting of the renegade general.

''What happened to him was totally unexpected,'' said Colonel Dithaporn Sasasmit, spokesman for the Internal Security Operation Command. He added that all soldiers had been instructed not to use force with unarmed people.

The Canadian Embassy announced its closure today because of the continuing disturbances, joining several others.