Protests renewed in Thai capital

Thousands of demonstrators are gathering in Bangkok to mark the third anniversary of the coup which ousted then Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

His supporters, mostly from rural parts of Thailand, are demanding a stronger voice in the way the country is run.

Their last protest, in April, ended in violent clashes in the Thai capital.

A separate group of protesters plan to hold a protest at a temple on the Cambodian border that both countries claim, sparking fears of violence.

Security forces set up roadblocks to try to prevent the group entering the 11th century site of Preah Vihear, which has been the scene of deadly cross-border shootings in recent months.

Election call

In Bangkok, thousands of troops and police were deployed ahead of the protest by Mr Thaksin's red-shirted supporters.

Mr Thaksin himself is in overseas exile, after being convicted in absentia of corruption.

Profile: Reds and yellows Tranquil temple at centre of a storm

He won elections in 2001 and 2005, swept to office by a wave of support from rural voters whose concerns he worked to address. After he was ousted, his allies won the first post-coup elections in 2007.

But protests - including a blockade of Bangkok's two international airports - by those who opposed him, the yellow-shirted People's Alliance for Democracy, forced that government from office, allowing the party they backed to form a coalition.

The red camp want fresh elections and a pardon for Mr Thaksin. Their last rally, in April, ended in violence, with several buses burned and dozens of people injured.

Temple tensions

The yellow camp, meanwhile, say they want to demonstrate at Preah Vihear, the temple complex at the heart of a border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia.

The PAD says the government must eject Cambodian troops from what they perceive as Thai territory.

An international court awarded the temple area to Cambodia in 1962, but disputes over land surrounding it have never been resolved.

Both countries deployed troops there after tensions escalated last year, and there have been several deadly exchanges of fire.

Thai security personnel and local villagers have set up roadblocks to prevent the demonstrators gaining access to the area.