Former PULO senior leader arrested in Malaysia - Thai military

Thailand's Fourth Army Commander Lt Gen Piyawat Nakwanich confirmed the former leader's arrest to Bernama when contacted today.

"I was informed that he was arrested by the Malaysian authorities. My men had double checked (with reliable sources) on his reported arrest, " he said, without elaborating on the matter.

He said the former PULO leader was neither wanted for any security offence nor carried a warrant of arrest in Thailand since his release from prison two years ago, but the security authorities exercised normal monitoring to "keep an eye" on him.

Piyawat said the former leader's arrest was Malaysia's affair and Thailand had nothing to do with it.

According to a source, Ismail was arrested several days ago at his family-run restaurant in Perak following investigation by Malaysian police on an earlier case.

His arrest followed a police operation in Kedah several days before that saw a man shot dead after a brief gunfight.

The dead man was suspected to have been involved in arms smuggling at the Malaysian-Thai border area.

"The police checked the deceased's handphone and found Ismail's handphone number which led to his arrest days later," said the source of the man who once led the armed-wing of PULO in its long struggle in southern Thailand.

The source also claimed that Ismail has since been released by the Malaysian police, but Bernama could not confirm it.

Ismail, 72, who resided in Kampung Ternang, Panarek in Pattani, was only released from a Thai prison two years ago after serving 17 years in jail, following a pardon from the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

He was released in 2015 on the eve of Aidilfitri as a goodwill gesture from the Thai government.

In an interview with Bernama at his house in Pattani last year, Ismail said that after his release from prison he had been working together with southern Thailand authorities, especially the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre (SBPAC), to bring economic development to the people.

According to him, the government should pay more attention to the economic and social well-being of the locals by implementing relevant programmes that could uplift their livelihood, as it could be effective in discouraging them from engaging in violence and criminal activities.