BANGKOK ? (UPDATE) Ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra kissed the ground to the cheers of thousands of supporters as he stepped out of Bangkok's airport, ending 17 months of exile.
Wearing a dark suit, Thaksin walked out of a VIP lounge and placed his face to the ground to a roar of applause from people carrying banners, flags and roses to welcome him home, television pictures showed.
Thaksin returned to Thailand for the first time since the coup against his government in September 2006, and was set to be taken into to custody by police to go to the Supreme Court to hear corruption charges against him.
