Bangkok: Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva said in a televised address that the situation in Bangkok has returned to normal and that he is "very sad" about the lives lost during clashes with protesters this week.
The military operation was needed to bring about the "rule of law", he said.
Slowly, Bangkok is beginning to emege from a day of violence, two days of curfew and weeks of political unrest which brought Thailand to the brink of full scale civil war.
Friday morning, there were signs that the city is slowly getting to normal.
There were fewer checkpoints, the military were returning to the barracks and police armed with shotguns were taking over from soldiers in full battle dress.
Electricy company workers were beginning the daunting propsed to repairing miles of wiring and poles destroyed in Wednesday's military assault and rioting in downdown Bangkok.
Thailand picked up the pieces Friday after violence and mayhem triggered by a crackdown on anti-government protests, as the focus swung to recovery and reconciliation in a divided nation.
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The army said it had nearly completed an operation to secure central Bangkok, crushing resistance from militants in the "Red Shirts" movement who went on the rampage after their leaders surrendered.
Across central Bangkok a huge clean-up was under way after a terrifying outbreak of looting and burning that saw some 36 major buildings go up in flames including the stock exchange and the nation's biggest mall.
City workers used everything from brooms to bulldozers to clear debris left behind after two months of rolling demonstrations, including the remnants of towering barricades the Reds had used to occupy a top shopping district.
In the hotspots where protesters have battled with security forces over the past week, roads were being cleared of burned tyres, and concrete blocks and stones that had been used as missiles.
"Time to Rebuild," the Nation newspaper said in a front-page banner, as reports said the damage bill from the torched buildings alone could reach 40 billion baht.
With inputs from AFP
