Sunday, December 31, 2006

Leaving for Bangkok on the 3rd...

Bangkok explosions leave two dead
Police examine scene of one blast at a market in Klong Toey, Bangkok.
Bombs blasts are relatively rare in the Thai capital
A series of bomb or grenade explosions in the Thai capital has killed two people and injured about 30 others, including at least six foreigners.

A first spate of six attacks occurred at sites across Bangkok as streets were filling up late afternoon local time ahead of New Year's Eve celebrations.

Just before midnight, two further blasts rocked the city centre.

The Thai authorities had cancelled all public celebrations for New Year's Eve after the first devices went off.

Police do not believe foreign groups or militants from the Muslim south are to blame, says the BBC's Jonathan Head.

Our Bangkok correspondent says many Thais suspect the attacks were the work of opponents of the current military government, which forced Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra from office in September.

There was a big bang and people started screaming and running
Chalermsak Sanbee
Witness

The latest explosions occurred near the Central World Plaza, a shopping mall.

Of the earlier attacks, the largest was at about 1730 (1030 GMT) near a bus station next to one of Bangkok's busiest intersections, Victory Monument.

Police said this caused the biggest number of casualties.

Reports suggest the device was planted beneath a seat at a bus stop or in a rubbish bin.

One witness who was standing nearby, 17-year-old Chalermsak Sanbee told Reuters news agency:

"There was a big bang and people started screaming and running. I saw people with blood all over their legs and faces."

Other blasts were reported:

  • close to a police post in the Saphan Kwai district
  • at a car park in the Seacon Square shopping mall
  • at a market in the Klong Toey district
  • in Kae Lai district in the northern suburb of Nonthaburi
  • along Sukhumvit Road in the south-east

National police chief General Ajirawit Suphanaphesat said the authorities were inspecting other locations where suspicious packages were found.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6221177.stm

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