This handout photo taken and released on July 2, 2026 by Ruamjai Mukdahan Rescue Foundation shows the aftermath of a collision between a pickup truck driven by an 11-year old and a procession of Buddhist monks, killing nine monks and injuring more than 20 others, in the northeastern Thai province of Mukdahan.
An 11-year-old boy drove his parents' truck into a Buddhist procession in Thailand on Thursday, killing nine monks and seriously injuring around 10 others, police and local authorities said.
A group of 35 monks and five lay followers were walking along a roadside in northeastern Mukdahan province during a pilgrimage when the incident occurred.
"I saw a boy driving a pickup truck, approaching. At that moment I was chanting 'Buddho, Buddho' (a meditation mantra)," one monk, identified as Phra Sompong, said in a video posted online by local rescue workers.
"Then suddenly the truck hit at full speed and crashed us," he said.
