Bangkok, August 17: A bomb on a motorcycle exploded Monday just outside a Hindu shrine in the centre of the Thai capital, killing at least 27 people in an attack the government said was aimed at destroying the economy and the tourism industry. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast just outside the Erawan shrine at a major intersection.
Thai forces are fighting a low-level Muslim insurgency in the predominantly Buddhist country’s south, but those rebels have rarely launched attacks outside their ethnic Malay heartland. “The perpetrators intended to destroy the economy and tourism because the incident occurred in the heart of the tourism district,” defence minister Prawit Wongsuwan said.
The Erawan shrine, on a busy corner near top hotels, shopping centres, offices and a hospital, is a major tourist attraction, especially for visitors from East Asia. Many ordinary Thais also worship there.
The government would set up a “war room” to coordinate the response to the blast, the Nation television channel quoted Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha as saying.
Police said the bomb had killed 27 people and wounded 78, many of whom were taken to the nearby police hospital. A witness at the blast site said she saw pieces of human flesh there, and a soldier later told onlookers to move back, saying they were checking for a second bomb.
Police, emergency vans and bomb detonation squads rushed to the area where several motorcycles lay mangled. Bomb attacks in Bangkok are extremely rare.
In 2012, a series of explosions hit Bangkok, injuring five people. Thai authorities said the bombings were a botched attempt by Iranian nationals to assassinate Israeli diplomats. AGENCIES
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