Bomb kills 18, leaving 117 injured in central Bangkok.
Erawan Shrine, nestled between giant malls in downtown Bangkok, is normally a riot of incense, garlands, tourists and Buddhist worshipers who come to pray to a Hindu deity. At the height of rush hour, the shrine area wasshaken by an explosion that killed at least 18 people and injured 117 more, according to police and local media, who reported that foreigners were among the fatalities. Police blamed the carnage on a bomb and said they had defused a second explosive device nearby.
Initial reports said the bomb, which exploded at about 7pm local time (7am EST) had been hidden inside a motorcycle, though police later backtracked on that claim. The popular shrine was located at the Rajprasong intersection, the site of anti-government demonstrations in recent years. Thai Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said it was too early to ascribe political motives, but said the bomb had been intended to “damage tourism and the economy,” the BBC reports.
Bangkok has been hit by other small explosions in recent months, some of which were later blamed by the country’s military regime on anti-government forces. In 2010, the streets near Erawan Shrine were also bloodied when the army cracked down on anti-government protesters, killing dozens.
For all its tourist appeal, the country markets itself as the land of smiles—Thailand is not a wholly peaceful place. In its deep south, shadowy Muslim militants have waged a campaign of bombings, shootings and beheadings that have claimed thousands of lives over the past decade. Their deadly crusade has generally not strayed outside of the nation’s southernmost provinces, which were once part of a Malay Muslim sultanate before Thailand annexed them.
Erawan Shrine, nestled between giant malls in downtown Bangkok, is normally a riot of incense, garlands, tourists and Buddhist worshipers who come to pray to a Hindu deity. At the height of rush hour, the shrine area wasshaken by an explosion that killed at least 18 people and injured 117 more, according to police and local media, who reported that foreigners were among the fatalities. Police blamed the carnage on a bomb and said they had defused a second explosive device nearby.
Initial reports said the bomb, which exploded at about 7pm local time (7am EST) had been hidden inside a motorcycle, though police later backtracked on that claim. The popular shrine was located at the Rajprasong intersection, the site of anti-government demonstrations in recent years. Thai Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said it was too early to ascribe political motives, but said the bomb had been intended to “damage tourism and the economy,” the BBC reports.
Bangkok has been hit by other small explosions in recent months, some of which were later blamed by the country’s military regime on anti-government forces. In 2010, the streets near Erawan Shrine were also bloodied when the army cracked down on anti-government protesters, killing dozens.
For all its tourist appeal, the country markets itself as the land of smiles—Thailand is not a wholly peaceful place. In its deep south, shadowy Muslim militants have waged a campaign of bombings, shootings and beheadings that have claimed thousands of lives over the past decade. Their deadly crusade has generally not strayed outside of the nation’s southernmost provinces, which were once part of a Malay Muslim sultanate before Thailand annexed them.
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