The Thai army has deployed hundreds of soldiers to Bangkok's business district to prevent anti-government protesters from occupying the area.

Heavily armed soldiers have erected barbed wire barriers and are patrolling the district. Many Thai fear the anti-government protests will again lead to clashes with security forces. Last week 17 civilians and four soldiers were killed in clashes between the red-shirted protesters and the army. There have been no clashes since, but there are still large numbers of Red Shirts in the capital.

Political tensions in Thailand mounted further after leaders of the yellow-shirt movement, which supports the political establishment, gave the government one week to end the unrest. The yellow-shirt movement is made up mainly of businessmen and middle-class royalists, whereas most of the Red Shirts are poor workers from rural areas seeking a greater say in Thai politics.

The conflict between the urban political establishment and the rural and urban poor dates back to 2006, when street protests by the Yellow Shirts triggered an army coup against then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who enjoyed widespread support in rural areas.