Saturday, February 27, 2016

Bombing at Erawan Shrine: Was there a bomb under Chao Phraya Princess Pier before?

Did the bombers of Erawan Shrine first plant a bomb at Chao Phraya Princess Pier in Bangkok, where hundreds of Chinese tourists gather each day to board dinner cruises along the river? The bomb planted at Erawan Shrine on August 17 in 2015 killed 20 people, mostly ethnic Chinese. Now reporters of Reuters cite the military indictment, according to which a first attempt at Chao Phraya Princess Pier (River City pier) failed.

Yusufu Mieraili and Adem Karadag, the two suspects arrested last year by Thai police after the attack at Erawan shrine, are Uighur Muslims from China's Xinjiang region. The two suspects appeared in a Bangkok military court on February 16 to hear the charges against them, including murder and illegal possession of explosives. Both men say they are innocent. Read more.

The motive for the bombing is still uncleared. But speculations have centred on revenge, because Thailand repatriated 109 Uighurs to China in July 2015.