The curfew imposed on the Thai capital Bangkok and 23 of the country's 75 provinces - most of them in the north - has been extended by three days.

The measure is in force from 9 o'clock at night until 5 o'clock in the morning, two hours shorter than the curfew of the past few days.

The red-shirted protesters appear to have abandoned 'their' part of central Bangkok. During the night, shots were heard in a number of locations around the capital, including at a Buddhist temple complex.

About 1,000 red shirts took refuge at the temple, but the protesters have since left the site. Most of the people there - mainly women, children and old people, were urged by the army to 'go home'. When soldiers entered the temple complex, all they found were six bodies.

On Wednesday, 11 people were killed in clashes between the army and the red shirted protesters. Several of the protest leaders surrendered to the police, but their supporters set fire to a number of buildings, including the stock exchange, banks and a major shopping mall. The famous Central World department store was largely destroyed. On Thursday morning calm had apparently returned to the city.

The organisation Human Rights Watch (HRW) says major human rights violations were committed in Bangkok in the past few days. HRW says both the army and the protesters are responsible for the incidents. The organisation says it is greatly concerned about the situation.