BANGKOK, Thailand – Deputy Prime Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa and other top officials flew to the Deep South's Pattani province Friday (August 10th) to inspect security measures and offer moral support amid a surge in violence, The Nation reported.

Yutthasak, who has been appointed head of a new southern operations centre, was accompanied by Defence Minister ACM Sukumpol Suwanatat, army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha and Deputy National Police Chief Adul Saengsingkaew.

The delegation was scheduled to visit Sirindhorn Camp in Yarang district, and to meet with religious leaders and residents before returning to Bangkok at 4pm, according to The Nation.

Yutthasak said he would also listen to what officials on the ground had to say about tackling violence. "There is a lot of work to do. I need to get to it," he said, according to The Bangkok Post.

The new operations centre has drawn criticism as yet one more of a large number of agencies with overlapping functions at work in the Deep South.

But Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has defended the new body, saying it will function to co-ordinate the work of existing agencies, ensuring they are working together and dealing effectively with the southern problems.