BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s army declared martial law on Tuesday to restore order after six months of anti-government protests which have left the country without a proper functioning government, but the move did not constitute a coup, military officials said.
The caretaker government was still in office, said deputy army spokesman Colonel Winthai Suvari, following the surprise announcement on television at 3 a.m. (09.00 p.m. BST Monday).
“This martial law is just to restore peace and stability, it has nothing to do with the government. The government is still functioning as normal,” Winthai told Reuters.
