Press Writer © 2010 The Associated Press
May 17, 2010, 10:11AM
BANGKOK — The Thai government said it would accept a cease-fire offer from a Red Shirt protest leader on Monday if their fighters return to their camp in central Bangkok, as street battles that have killed 37 people raged for a fifth day.
The offer came during a telephone conversation between Red Shirt leader Nattawut Saikuwa, who called the government's chief negotiator, Korbsak Sabhavasu, on his cell phone. It was the first direct talks between the two sides since the fighting started Thursday.
Nattawut's response was not immediately known. Calls to his phone went unanswered.
Earlier, a Thai government ultimatum passed for the estimated 5,000 protesters occupying a barricaded encampment in the city center by 3 p.m. Monday or face up to two years in prison. The demand had little apparent effect, and unrest still flared in various parts of the downtown area outside the barricades, with troops firing live ammunition at protesters who were lighting tires to hide their positions. The thick smoke darkened the sky.
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