Thai authorities seeking 'identified' male bombing suspect

The head of Thailand's junta says a suspect sought by authorities in connection with a deadly Bangkok blast has been identified. The man was seen on CCTV footage taken prior to the explosion at the blast site.



Thailand's junta leader Prayut Chan-Ocha said on Tuesday that security forces were looking for a suspect believed to be from an "anti-government group based in Thailand's northeast" following Monday's deadly bomb blast in the capital, Bangkok.

"Today there is a suspect who appeared on CCTV, but it's not clear.... we are looking for this guy," Prayut told reporters, adding that the bombing was the "worst-ever attack" on Thailand.

The northeast region is a stronghold of the so-called "Red Shirt" movement, which opposes the military junta and remains loyal to ex-Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who was toppled in a coup last year.

Army chief Udomedej Sitabutr said the male suspect was seen on closed-circuit television footage holding a suspicious-looking package before the bomb went off at a Hindu shrine, killing at least 21 people, including at least five foreigners, and wounding scores more.



Bangkok has seen repeated incidents of political violence since 2006, but Monday's blast was one of the rare occasions when foreigners, including Chinese, Hong Kong, Singaporean and Malaysian citizens, have been killed.

Thailand is also fighting a decade-long rebellion in its most southern provinces, home to a Muslim majority. The insurgency has killed more than 6,400 people, mostly civilians, but the Muslim rebels have never carried out a confirmed attack outside the southern region.

The comments by Prayut indicate that authorities are focusing more on groups loyal to the Shinawatra family, including Yingluck's self-exiled brother Thaksin Shinawatra, in their investigation.



Thaksin is living in self-exile after being himself ousted as prime minister in a 2006 coup. Parties led by members of the Shinawatra clan or its proxies ruled Thailand from 2001 owing to "Red Shirt" support from the rural north and northeast, but the royalist elite in Bangkok is hotly opposed to the family.

However, Red Shirts have so far carried out only relatively minor attacks on security forces or government buildings.

Monday's explosion occurred during the city's rush hour at the Erawan shrine, a Hindu place of worship that has become one of the Thai capital's top tourist sights, also attracting thousands of Buddhist devotees.


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