Thailand PM vows to quickly track down Bangkok blast culprits

BANGKOK: Thailand’s prime minister on Tuesday promised that authorities would quickly track down those responsible for the central Bangkok bombing that killed at least 18 people and injured more than 100, which he described as the country’s worst attack ever.

A bomb on a motorcycle exploded on Monday just outside a Hindu shrine in the Thai capital, killing 27 people, including foreign tourists, media reported, in an attack the government said was a bid to destroy the economy.

The defense minister, meanwhile, said officials had no prior intelligence about Monday’s rush-hour bombing of a popular shrine at a hectic intersection. The blast from the improvised explosive device scattered body parts, spattered blood, blasted windows and burned motorbikes to the metal.

Police chief Somyot said the bomb was made with a pipe wrapped in cloth and weighed 3 kilograms (more than 6 pounds).

It detonated at the Erawan Shrine, which is dedicated to the Hindu god Brahma, but is extremely popular among Thailand’s Buddhists as well as Chinese tourists.

#BangkokBlast: 18 people killed, 117 others injured in a bombing at shrine in #Bangkok, public health offic… https://t.co/lNmBJQEaNH

— Zack Jones (@zackisthe) August 17, 2015

Throngs of tourists come there to pray at all hours, lighting incense and offering flowers purchased from rows of stalls set up on the sidewalk along the shrine.

The site is a hubbub of activity, with quiet worshippers sometimes flanked by Thai dancers hired by those seeking good fortune, while groups of tourists shuffle in and out.

Bangkok has been relatively peaceful since a military coup ousted a civilian government in May last year after several months of sometimes violent political protests against the previous government.

Although Thailand is predominantly Buddhist, it has enormous Hindu influence on its religious practices and language.

SINGAPORE PRESIDENT CONDEMNS THE BLAST