Teen Militants Surrender

The twin adolescent leaders of a mystical Burma rebel group and 14 followers surrendered to Thai authorities Tuesday, police said.

The members of God's Army, led by brothers Luther and Johnny Htoo, turned themselves in at the border with Myanmar in Ratchaburi province, said Lt. Col. Somchai Suwatsuwan of Thailand's Border Patrol Police.

Those who surrendered included nine boys and two girls, and three adults or older teen-agers, he said. The Nation news television channel reported that they turned over M16 assault rifles and other weapons.

God's Army, an armed group of ethnic Karen, gained notoriety after it gave refuge to another group of Myanmar dissidents — known as the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors — who had taken hostages at the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok in October 1999. The Thais allowed them to go free in exchange for the captives' release.

Several months later, the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors seized a hospital in Ratchaburi, 60 miles west of Bangkok. They demanded medicine and doctors to treat ethnic Karen injured in fighting with Myanmar troops. All the hostage-takers were killed by Thai commandos.

It was unclear whether God's Army participated in the hospital raid. The Myanmar army and Thai forces ousted the group from its stronghold afterward. They have been on the run, variously reported to be hiding out in villages on either side of the border between Thailand and Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.

A photograph of a long-haired, angelic-looking Johnny posing next to his tougher-looking, cigarette puffing brother was taken after the embassy takeover and circulated around the world after the hospital raid. The twins were 12 at the time.

Somchai said most of those who surrendered were being held at Border Patrol Police headquarters in the province. He declined to give more details, saying an investigation was under way.

The Nation television channel reported that the group includes two suspects in the killing of villagers during a robbery near the Thai border earlier this month. They had been separated from the others and were detained at a police station, the Nation reported.

Although the governments of Thailand and Myanmar maintain good ties, violence along the border is common. The frontier seethes with insurgents fighting the Myanmar government, drug traffickers and smugglers. Local cross-border conflicts are common.

Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962. The Karen minority has been fighting for more autonomy since 1949, but has been losing ground steadily over the past decade.