Two border patrol policemen were shot dead in Thai southern province of Yala on Tuesday morning, military source told Xinhua.

Both the policemen were shot at the heads and chests inside a market in Krong Srirang district of Yala province when unidentified gunmen riding motorcycles assaulted them by M-16 rifles at about 11:00 a.m. local time (0400 GMT), the source said.

One of the policemen died at the scene and the other one died in a nearby hospital. Another two packwomen selling snacks to the policemen were injured.

The gunmen ran away before the military and police launched a manhunt.

On Monday, responding to escalating violence in Thailand's Muslim-majority southern border provinces as represented by last Friday's teacher hostage incident in Narathiwat, Thai caretaker Deputy Prime Minister proposed four new short-term measures to address the problem.

At least 1,200 people have been killed since the unrest broke out in January 2004 in the mainly Muslim provinces along Thailand's border with Malaysia. The violence was blamed on a complex web of Islamic separatists, local corruption and organized crime.

Source: Xinhua