BANGKOK Thailands Queen Sirikit attended the funeral Monday of a demonstrator killed in recent clashes between police and anti-government protesters, in a rare royal appearance at such an event.

An anti-government group called off another rally planned for Monday, ensuring thousands of their supporters attended the cremation of the 28-year-old woman at a temple on the outskirts of Bangkok.

The woman and a guard for the protesters died and more than 400 people were injured during the confrontation last Tuesday, the worst street violence in Bangkok for 16 years.

Violence flared when Peoples Alliance for Democracy (PAD) supporters descended on parliament to try to stop lawmakers from meeting, prompting police to fire tear gas on the massing crowd.

Queen Sirikit -- wife of Thailands deeply-revered King Bhumibol Adulaydej -- has already offered hundreds of thousands of baht for medical expenses of those injured in the clashes.

At the temple, thousands of PAD supporters waved blue flags with the queens emblem and shouted `Long live the queen`, as Queen Sirikit arrived, an AFP correspondent reported.

Analyst David Streckfuss, a historian at the University of Wisconsin, said the queens appearance at the funeral was unusual. `Although there have been lots of social activists killed in the last decade, to my knowledge none of their funeral ceremonies received any special attention from members of the royal family,` said Streckfuss, who lives in Thailand.

Opinion

Editorial

Spoiler alert
17 Jun, 2026

Spoiler alert

AFTER the temporary peace deal between the US and Iran is physically signed in Geneva on Friday, an arduous process...
Storm-tested cities
17 Jun, 2026

Storm-tested cities

THE deaths caused by the latest spell of monsoon rains in KP and Punjab illustrate how quickly severe weather can...
Chakwal tragedy
17 Jun, 2026

Chakwal tragedy

A NINE-year-old girl is dead because a Punjab Crime Control Department gunman mistook her family’s car for a...
A new deal
Updated 16 Jun, 2026

A new deal

AFTER three and a half months of war between US-Israel and Iran and an acrimonious temporary ceasefire, a genuine...
Charter of economy
16 Jun, 2026

Charter of economy

NO one expected the PTI to accept the government’s invitation to sign a charter of economy; just as few expected...
Hostage seamen
16 Jun, 2026

Hostage seamen

SOME 50 days on, 11 Pakistani nationals are still in Somali pirates’ captivity. Their appeals to the Pakistani and...