Prime Minister promises to quickly track down those responsible for Bangkok bomb blast

The Prime Minister of Thailand has promised authorities he will quickly track down those responsible for the 18.55 bomb attack in Bangkok on Monday 17^th of August. According to the defense minister the authorities had no prior intelligence about the bomb that took 17 lives, left body parts in the streets of the capital, blew out windows and left motorbikes burned down to the metal.

Although it has been widely reported that Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said the bomb was aimed at destroying the country’s economy by targeting a tourist area, so far nobody has claimed responsibility for the deadly blast.

Video footage shows a scene of shock and pandemonium in the capital with people running for their lives in an area known to be heavily populated by tourists and Thai’s observing and praying at a popular shrine.

This morning police and soldiers were still in the area that is littered with glass and debris. The normally very busy intersection was closed off to traffic as onlookers took photos of the scene from behind police tape. Five star hotels in the area set up barricades to inspect vehicles before allowing them to pass into hotel parking facilities.

So far 18 people have been confirmed dead either in the blast or later in hospital, it is thought 117 more have been injured. China have reported three of their citizens dead, it is thought a Filipino is also among those killed.

It has been reported that police chief Somyot said the bomb was made with pipe wrapped in cloth and weighing around 3 kilograms. It detonated by the Erawan Shrine which is dedicated to the Hindu God Brahma and is very popular with Buddhist Thais as well as tourists who pray there and light incense and leave flowers purchased from stalls set up around the shrine. It is hard to imagine whoever planted the bomb not being aware of the inevitable great loss of life in such a popular local spot.

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