 Following the 17 November 1971 coup by military dictators Thanom Kittikachorn and Praphas Charusathien, Praphas appointed himself interior minister, chief of police, and head of CSOC.The CSOC was implicated in several atrocities in its 1970s war against leftist groups.This included the Red Drum Massacre, the mass murder of southern Thai activists by burning them alive in gasoline drums.