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BANGKOK (Reuters) - Hundreds of Thai riot police climbed into the occupied compound of the prime minister's office on Friday to deliver a court order for the eviction of protesters trying to overthrow the government.
Teargas was fired and scuffles broke out between the police and sentries posted by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), which occupied the seat of government on Tuesday, a Reuters reporter at the scene said.
At least 15 protesters were arrested and the police forced open one padlocked gate into the compound, the reporter said.
The PAD, whose 2005 protests against then Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra contributed to his removal in a coup a year later, have vowed to remain inside the Government House compound until the current elected administration falls.
There were up to 4,000 protesters inside the compound as the police moved in, the reporter said. The police did not immediately move to evict everyone.
The group says Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej is an illegitimate proxy for Thaksin. They had barricaded themselves in the compounded with razor wire and car tires, and posted sentries armed with bars and golf clubs to repel police.
Although the demonstrators and authorities have reached a stalemate around the occupied Government House compound, pressure is growing on the seven-month-old administration with rail workers widening a strike started on Thursday.
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