Thai authorities yesterday hunted for culprits behind a wave of bombings targeting popular tourist destinations, as businesses braced for the economic fallout from the attacks on the crucial tourism industry.
The kingdom was on edge after 11 small bombs exploded across five southern provinces on Thursday night and Friday morning, killing four locals and wounding more than 30 people — including foreign tourists.
The bombs, most of them detonated in twin blasts, struck key tourism hubs during a long weekend, including the seaside resort town of Hua Hin and the island of Phuket.
Photo: AFP
No one has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but police have ruled out international terrorism and said the campaign was an act of “local sabotage.”
“There have been no arrests yet,” deputy national police spokesman Piyapan Pingmuang told reporters yesterday, adding that police have yet to identify any suspects or a motive.
Authorities have also been quick to downplay possible links to a simmering militant insurgency in Thailand’s southern border region.
If the Muslim rebels are to blame, it would mark a major expansion of a secessionist campaign that has been concentrated further south and rarely targets foreigners.
Analysts said it would also be a huge embarrassment to Thailand’s coup-installed military government, which has made boosting national security a flagship policy of its regime.
In hardest-hit Hua Hin, formerly the king’s summer retreat which was rocked by four bombs in 24 hours, locals braced for a blow to the town’s mainstay industry ahead of peak tourist season.
“Hua Hin has never had a problem like this,” Nai Amporn, the owner of a beachside restaurant, told reporters.
“I am afraid business will become slow — even this morning, you can see there are less people here for breakfast. I think they have all gone home,” he added.
Hua Hin, about 200km south of Bangkok, is a popular stop for local and foreign travelers. It was for years the favorite seaside retreat of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest-reigning monarch.
The 88-year-old is currently hospitalized in Bangkok, a source of anxiety for many Thais and a key factor in the kingdom’s past decade of political turmoil.
The blasts erupted on the eve of Queen Sirikit’s 84th birthday, also celebrated as Mother’s Day in Thailand.
Famed for its idyllic islands and Buddhist temples, Thailand is a tourism powerhouse and was hoping for a record 32 million visitors this year.
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