A Muslim leader in Thailand’s south who had survived a previous attack was shot dead Saturday in Pattani province.

A Muslim leader in Thailand’s south who had survived a previous attack was shot dead Saturday in Pattani province, according to local media.

Dormeng Benjaewan, the 76-year-old imam of the Payonok Mosque in Saiburi district, was shot several times by a suspect riding pillion on a motorcycle in front of a food shop.

He was transferred to a local hospital where he died from wounds sustained to his head and body, the Bangkok Post reported.

Benjaewan had been respected among local residents and had worked with Thai authorities to resolve the decades-long unrest that has been destabilizing the three provinces bordering Malaysia where the population is 80 percent Malay Muslim.

Several imams have already killed in the conflict as a number of opposition groups oppose the Thai central state, seeking secession or political autonomy.

In a prominent case in August 2013, Imam Yacob Raimanee of Pattani’s central mosque – the main Islamic house of worship in the south – was gunned down in Pattani city.

The parties behind the killing of Raimanee, who had been considered a key figure in helping resolve tensions between insurgents and authorities, have yet to be identified.