Thai bombs work of one mastermind

Last week’s attacks hit tourist resort towns further north – a highly unusual assault in a country where foreign visitors are rarely caught up in political violence.

“Why has it happened now when the country is improving …” Security forces comb through blood-spattered wreckage and debris.

Former worldwide striker Armstrong also spoke of his horror in the wake of 11 blasts within 18 hours in cities and resort towns across southern Thailand, which left at least four people dead and dozens more wounded.

While ruling junta officials have insinuated the August 11-12 attacks were staged by political groups peeved by this month’s passage of a new constitution that will more firmly entrench military rule, analysts and diplomats believe insurgents active in the country’s three southernmost Muslim majority provinces are more likely to blame.

However, he did not identify or elaborate at this stage on the individual mastermind or the motives behind the attacks, which killed four people and injured dozens of Thais and foreigners. There were two more blasts in the town less than 12 hours later. The media gets bored with it. With its occupancy rate falling to 69% from 69.2% a year ago as competition intensified with low-priced carriers, a further decrease in passengers would prove a blow.

“We are working with MCMC and will also be assisting the Thai police as we understand this could be a vital lead in their investigations”, he said. “But that could change if attacks like this prove effective” by attracting greater attention to a war that’s ground on largely out of sight for years, he said.

But Assistant National Police Chief Suchart Theerasawaat said the bombs used in at least three of the attacks were similar to those found previously in the southern border provinces.

Same of those used for the bomb attacks in Phuket and Phangnga on Friday. “Tourists should remain defiant in the face of these incidents and feel safe carrying on with their holiday plans”. According to Reuters, he said that insurgents could have been hired by other parties to commit the violence. Some of the phones, recovered by police, were reportedly purchased in Malaysia, into which Thai militants are known to cross easily. Bombs were detonated in the resort areas of Hua Hin, Phuket, Phang Nga, Surat Thani and Trang. The provinces in the south once belonged to a Malay sultanate which Thailand annexed in 1902. Thailand’s government insists on referring to them simply as “people with different opinions from the state”, a position the militants reject. “They figure that the message is better heard through actions”.

No group has claimed responsibility for the wave of bombings, which sent shudders through the tourism industry, one of the few bright spots in Thailand’s sluggish economy.

It could also indicate that security operations in the south had “seriously failed”, despite the military taking complete control after seizing power in a 2014 coup, she added. The commander at the Kawila army base in Chiang Mai, Maj.

The timing of the attacks gives credence to the theory that domestic dissidents were behind it: The explosions occurred several days after Thais approved a new constitution in a referendum that critics say will ensure the military’s hand in politics for the foreseeable future.

The conflict pits armed and organised ethnic Malays – nearly all of whom are Muslims – against the predominantly Buddhist Thai state.

A coalition of local rights groups on Tuesday said at least 10 people have been taken into custody as part of the investigation, including at least four detained by the military in Bangkok.