Video: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wj47ryvvyceyab9/VRP52639.mp4?dl=0
Thai police fired rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons at rebels in Bangkok, Thailand, on Tuesday night.
Riot officers opened fire on the anarchists after they defied a Covid-19 ban on crowds gathering, vandalised buildings and set alight items in the centre of the capital city.
The protest and unrest ended shortly after 10pm with a number of the anti-establishment activists injured in the fracas. Anger at the regime – which seized power with a military coup in 2014 – has grown in recent years sparking protests. Activists are demanding new elections, the prime minister to resign and a new constitution with ‘more democracy’.
Ministers say the unrest is being fuelled by disaffected opposition and exiled politicians such as former Man City owner Thaksin Shinawatra to encourage anarchists and youth groups to cause violence.
Thailand has recorded 795,951 Covid-19 cases and 6,588 deaths as of August 10 – with cases rising dramatically since April. Ministers have banned gatherings of more than five people and rolled out a 9pm curfew in the worst-hit regions.