The Thai authorities have rejected any foreign mediation in their confrontation with anti-government demonstrators. Many of the protesters known as the Red-shirts were besieged by the Thai army at a camp in central Bangkok. Red offered to open negotiations if such talks were supervised by the United Nations. At least 31 people have died since Thursday, when soldiers and police moved in to shift the demonstrators.A state of emergency has been declared in more than 20 provinces across the country – mostly in the protesters' northern heartlands – in a bid to stop more demonstrators heading to the capital.