Thailand's army chief, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, will begin to govern a polarized country on Friday, a day after he seized power in a bloodless coup in a bid to end six months of turmoil.
Prayuth launched his coup after factions refused to give ground in a struggle for power between the royalist establishment and a populist politician that has raised fears of serious violence and damage to Thailand's economy, southeast Asia's second biggest.
Soldiers detained some politicians from both sides when Prayuth announced the coup after talks he was presiding over broke down. The military censored the media, dispersed protesters and imposed a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew.
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