After sending Thai authorities on a wild goose chase to track down the 130 Thai Muslim refugees purportedly deported by Malaysia, attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail admitted making a blunder.

"I sincerely apologise for the miscommunication," he told Bernama this evening.

Earlier today, he and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad told reporters at the sidelines of an international conference in Kuala Lumpur that all the refugees have been sent back.

This set off alarms in Bangkok and the Thai Foreign Ministry embarked on a frantic search for the refugees, some of whom are accused of being militants.

The ministry reportedly said it had checked with the Thai embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Thai consulate in Kelantan, immigration officials in Sungai Golok and the military.

All of whom maintained that the refugees were still being held at a detention camp in Ajil, Terengganu.

"We're surprised by the report... we verified it with our embassy and other sources. It's not true," a ministry official was quoted as saying.

'We are happy'

At the press conference this morning, Radzi (right) in response to a question on the matter, was quoted as saying: "This is no longer an issue. All have been sent back. Both parties (Malaysia and Thailand) are happy."

On the other hand, Gani told the same press conference that the refugees were released last year.

"I was told about it... I received confirmation from my friends there (Thailand). We are very happy," he added.

Last August, 131 Thai Muslims fled to Kelantan, claiming that their lives were at risk following unrest in the Muslim-majority southern provinces.

They were then moved to a temporary detention centre in Ajil in September and a diplomatic row erupted between the two countries as Thailand claimed that there were wanted militants among the refugees.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) also interviewed the refugees but later left the issue to Malaysia and Thailand to settle.

In December last year, one of the refugees, dubbed as Thai 'Osama' and believed to be a key figure in the unrest and high on Thai police wanted list, was handed over to the Thai authorities.

On Dec 30, Thailand Foreign Minister Dr Kantathi Suphamongkhon said officials from both countries would continue their negotiations on the remaining refugees, adding that Thai officials wanted to interview all of them and not representatives of the group as in previous occasions.