At least 27 people have been killed and 78 wounded by a bomb blast that hit the commercial centre of the Thai capital Bangkok, the Reuters news agency and local media have said.
The blast, which was said to have taken place near the Erawan Shrine, occurred about 7.10pm local time, according to the Bangkok Post.
At least four foreigners were among the 27 dead in the blast, Reuters reported.
Nearby offices have reportedly been evacuated, according to reports on social media.
The bomb was placed inside the Erawan Shrine area, Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said.
Thai Police said a second bomb is being defused inside the shrine.
Al Jazeera's Veronice Pedrosa, reporting from the scene, said that rescue workers have told journalists that a secondary device has been found inside the shrine itself and the bomb squad are diffusing it.
Eric Seldin, of Thaicom Production Services, was 100 metres away when the explosion happened.
"I was inside the Hyatt hotel having dinner when we heard an extremely loud explosion near the Ratchaprasong intersection," he told Al Jazeera. "The windows were shattered and everyone at the hotel was startled.
"Security tried to shut down the hotel and attempted to keep everyone inside but I was able to go out and walk just about 50 metres close to the intersection.
"I noticed seven to eight covered bodies. There was damage to the ground of the shrine.
"On the street itself there were several casualties. There is a large security presence. Police are moving people back because they are worried about the second explosion.
"The area is extremely close to the National Police Headquarters and the police hospital," Seldin said.
The bomb squad is also on the scene of the blast, possibly looking for any other devices. There has been no claim of responsibility.
Thai forces are fighting a low-level Muslim insurgency in the predominantly Buddhist country's south, although those rebels have rarely launched attacks outside their ethnic Malay heartland.
The country has also been riven for a decade by intense and sometimes violent rivalry between political factions in Bangkok and elsewhere.
aljazeera.com
17/8/15
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The blast, which was said to have taken place near the Erawan Shrine, occurred about 7.10pm local time, according to the Bangkok Post.
At least four foreigners were among the 27 dead in the blast, Reuters reported.
Nearby offices have reportedly been evacuated, according to reports on social media.
The bomb was placed inside the Erawan Shrine area, Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said.
Thai Police said a second bomb is being defused inside the shrine.
Al Jazeera's Veronice Pedrosa, reporting from the scene, said that rescue workers have told journalists that a secondary device has been found inside the shrine itself and the bomb squad are diffusing it.
Eric Seldin, of Thaicom Production Services, was 100 metres away when the explosion happened.
"I was inside the Hyatt hotel having dinner when we heard an extremely loud explosion near the Ratchaprasong intersection," he told Al Jazeera. "The windows were shattered and everyone at the hotel was startled.
"Security tried to shut down the hotel and attempted to keep everyone inside but I was able to go out and walk just about 50 metres close to the intersection.
"I noticed seven to eight covered bodies. There was damage to the ground of the shrine.
"On the street itself there were several casualties. There is a large security presence. Police are moving people back because they are worried about the second explosion.
"The area is extremely close to the National Police Headquarters and the police hospital," Seldin said.
The bomb squad is also on the scene of the blast, possibly looking for any other devices. There has been no claim of responsibility.
Thai forces are fighting a low-level Muslim insurgency in the predominantly Buddhist country's south, although those rebels have rarely launched attacks outside their ethnic Malay heartland.
The country has also been riven for a decade by intense and sometimes violent rivalry between political factions in Bangkok and elsewhere.
aljazeera.com
17/8/15
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Attentat à Bangkok: 19 morts et 123 blessés selon un nouveau bilan...
ReplyDeleteL'explosion d'une bombe a fait au moins 19 morts lundi vers 18h30 (heure locale) près d'un sanctuaire et d'un centre commercial dans le centre de Bangkok, d'après un premier bilan de la police. Il y a 123 blessés, toujours selon la police. Parmi les tués figurent dix Thaïs, un Chinois et un Philippin, a précisé la police dans la soirée. Les médias thaïlandais parlaient eux de 27 morts.
Selon les Affaires étrangères, il n'y aurait pas de Belges parmi les victimes. Mais les services belges sont toujours en train de contacter les hôpitaux pour en être certains.
Peu après le drame, plusieurs corps démembrés étaient visibles sur les lieux de l'explosion à l'extérieur du sanctuaire d'Erawan, situé en plein coeur de la capitale thaïlandaise, au milieu d'immenses centres commerciaux et des gratte-ciels, a constaté un journaliste de l'AFP sur place.
Toujours selon les médias thaïlandais, la plupart des blessés sont des touristes venus de Chine et de Taiwan............http://www.rtbf.be/info/monde/asie/detail_explosion-dans-un-centre-commercial-de-bangkok-5-morts-et-20-blesses-video?id=9055593
Bangkok bomb: Attack aimed to kill foreigners - Thai minister...
ReplyDeleteThailand's defence minister has said those who planted a bomb at a Bangkok shrine deliberately targeted foreigners to harm tourism and the economy.
Prawit Wongsuwan vowed to hunt down the perpetrators of the attack in the capital, which killed at least 21 people and injured more than 120.
The Erawan Shrine is a major tourist attraction and foreigners are among the casualties.
The attack has not been claimed and it is unclear who would target the site................http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-33969621
18/8/15
Attentat à Bangkok: un suspect identifié sur des images de caméras de vidéosurveillance...
ReplyDeleteLa police thaïlandaise était à la recherche mardi d'un "suspect" identifié grâce aux images des caméras de vidéo-surveillance près des lieux de l'attentat qui a fait au moins 21 morts et plus de 120 blessés à Bangkok la veille, selon le chef de la junte.
La police recherchait mardi un "suspect" identifié grâce aux images de vidéo-surveillance après "la pire attaque jamais" commise en Thaïlande d'après le chef de la junte au pouvoir, et qui a fait au moins 21 morts à Bangkok. Les enquêteurs étaient à pied d'oeuvre sur les lieux de l'attentat à la bombe qui a frappé lundi en pleine heure de pointe un sanctuaire du centre de Bangkok, très fréquenté, y compris par les touristes étrangers.
Un suspect "originaire du nord-est du pays et membre d'un groupe opposé à la junte"
D'après le chef de la junte et Premier ministre, Prayut Chan-O-Cha, la police est à la recherche d'un suspect apparaissant sur les images des caméras de surveillance, "originaire du nord-est du pays et membre d'un groupe opposé à la junte". Le nord-est de la Thaïlande, la région de l'Issan, est le bastion des Chemises rouges, qui soutiennent l'ancien gouvernement chassé du pouvoir après des mois de manifestations suivies par un coup d'Etat militaire en 2014....................http://www.rtl.be/info/monde/international/attentat-a-bangkok-un-suspect-identifie-sur-des-images-de-cameras-de-videosurveillance-746945.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+RTLInternational+%28RTL+info+%3E++Monde%29
18/8/15
Another explosion occurred at a pier in Bangkok on Tuesday with no injuries reported, local media reported...
ReplyDeleteAt around 1: 20 pm local time, an explosive device was thrown down from Sathorn bridge near Sathorn pier, and exploded under the water, according to Bangkok Post.
The police have closed traffic from nearby skytrain station to the pier, from where a large number of locals and foreign tourists commute to popular tourist destinations in the capital including the Grand Palace, Asiatique and Chinatown.
globaltimes.cn
18/8/15
L'attentat de Bangkok était planifié: "plus de 10 personnes impliquées" ...
ReplyDeleteL'attentat de Bangkok, qui a tué 20 personnes lundi, a été bien planifié et "plus de 10 personnes" sont impliquées, a déclaré jeudi le chef de la police thaïlandaise à des journalistes.
"Cette explosion a été préparée par des équipes", a déclaré le chef de la police nationale Somyot Poompanmoung, précisant que les préparatifs avaient pris plus d'un mois. "Je crois que ce réseau a des liens avec des gens en Thaïlande... plus de 10 personnes ont été impliquées", a-t-il ajouté.
L'attaque a eu lieu lundi en fin de journée devant le sanctuaire d'Erawan, situé en plein coeur du quartier commerçant de Chidlom. Jeudi matin, 67 personnes étaient toujours hospitalisées, dont 12 dans un état grave.
D'après lui, une équipe a travaillé à la surveillance, une autre a fourni le matériel et une équipe était chargée de leur permettre de fuir les lieux.
D'après le mandat d'arrêt émis mercredi, le principal suspect de l'attentat est un "étranger non identifié", grand, à la peau claire, portant des lunettes à monture noire. Il a été filmé en train de déposer un sac à dos sous un banc devant le sanctuaire quelques minutes avant l'explosion.
La Thaïlande a annoncé jeudi matin qu'elle allait demander à Interpol de diffuser une "notice bleue", qui sert à recueillir des informations complémentaires sur l'identité, l'origine ou les activités des personnes.
AFP
20/8/15