Thai blast ‘not linked to global terrorism’
Suspicions shift to domestic plot planned month before
INTERNATIONAL terrorists weren’t suspected of a bomb attack in Bangkok this week that killed 20 people, and China was not the target, Thai authorities said yesterday, as police said they believed at least 10 plotters were involved.
There has been no claim of responsibility for Monday’s attack on a famous shrine crowded with tourists, which the government has said was designed to wreck the economy. Authorities have not blamed any group for carrying out Thailand’s worst bombing.
“Security agencies have cooperated with agencies from allied countries and have come to the preliminary conclusion that the incident is unlikely to be linked to international terrorism,” said Colonel Winthai Suvaree, a spokesman for Thailand’s ruling junta, known as the National Council for Peace and Order.
The Erawan shrine is particularly popular with tourists from China and other East Asian countries, and 14 foreigners were among the dead, including seven from mainland China and Hong Kong, but Winthai said Chinese tourists were not believed to have been the target.
China is an important ally and trade partner for Thailand and the biggest source of foreign tourists.
Police said on Wednesday a young man who was caught on grainy security camera footage planting the backpack bomb was believed to be European or Middle Eastern. Yesterday, authorities said the man might be Thai and was disguised to look foreign.
The apparent elimination of foreign militant involvement will feed speculation that either Muslim separatists waging a lowintensity insurgency in southern Thailand, or domestic political activists, were involved.
Police said at least 10 people were suspected of involvement and they appealed to Interpol for help in finding the man in the video.
National police chief Somyot Pumpanmuang said the investigation showed the attack was planned at least a month in advance by a “big network”.
“This includes those who looked out on the streets, prepared the bomb and those at the site and those who knew the escape route. I believe there must have been at least 10 people involved,” Somyot said.
Checks at airports and other exit points found that no one matching the description of the main suspect had left the country since the attack, police said.
Prime Minister Prayuth Chanocha said the attack signalled a threat to the region.
“This event has never happened in Thailand, it is dangerous for Asean,” he said, referring to the Association of South East Asian Nations.
The blast comes at a sensitive time for Thailand, which has been riven for a decade by a sometimesviolent struggle for power between political factions in Bangkok.
A parliament hand-picked by a junta that seized power in a coup last year is due to vote on a draft constitution next month.
Critics say the draft is undemocratic and intended to help the army secure power and curb the influence of elected politicians. The government has promised to restore democracy next year.
The government is also dealing with flagging growth, and yesterday appointed a new finance minister and a deputy premier to oversee the economy.
The Erawan shrine, which is dedicated to a Hindu deity but is popular with Buddhists in Thailand, has since reopened, with visitors leaving messages of condolence, flowers and candles.