Bangkok placed under emergency

Increasingly tense protests in Thailand have prompted the government to declare a state of emergency in Bangkok, the capital, and surrounding areas.

The so-called red shirt protesters - supporters of Thaksin Shinawatra, the deposed prime minister - stormed the parliament building on Wednesday. Now the police and the military will have broad powers to tackle the anti-government protests.

The red shirts want the Abhisit Vejjajiva, the incumbent prime minister, to resign and call new elections.

Wayne Hay reports Bangkok on the day's dramatic developments.