Vietnam embassy bombs spark security alert at Bangkok missions
BANGKOK - Thai police stepped up security at embassies in the Thai
capital after two bombs planted at the Vietnamese mission were
destroyed
in controlled explosions early Tuesday.
Thai police chief General Pornsak Burongkaviboon said an unidentified
man arrived at the embassy in a taxi at about 4:00 am (2100 GMT)
and placed a three kilogram (6.6 pound) bomb packed in a backpack
outside the gates.
The second device, a five kilogram device also made from fertiliser and
gasoline and wired up to a mobile phone detonator, was hurled
into the embassy grounds inside a cardboard box.
Metropolitan Police Lieutenant General Anan Piromkaew said no one was
injured in the controlled explosions which took place at about 5.30 am.
"Police tried to defuse the bomb by cutting the wires but they were not
able to do it. So they then decided to explode the device," he said.
"This was a professionally built device," he added. Defence Minister
Chavalit Yongchaiyudh said the government would investigate the attack.
"I have ordered the Interior Minister to handle this incident involving
the Vietnamese embassy," he said.
Anan promised a thorough probe into the bomb attack.
"I have ordered the investigation section to look into witnesses'
accounts of the taxi that arrived at the embassy," he said.
"Besides that I will ensure that police reinforce security at other
embassies, because we do not want a repeat of this incident."
According to initial investigations, witnesses at the scene reported
that the bomber was middle-aged and of Chinese appearance, Anan added.
The Vietnam embassy lies on a busy street in the centre of the Thai
capital, opposite the United States embassy and near the residence of
the US ambassador.
The mission remained closed during the morning, forcing bemused
tourists who had planned to collect passports and visas to gather
outside along with
dozens of police and reporters.
In an apparently unrelated incident, a bomb exploded at a police box in
the southern town of Pattani in the early hours of Monday, while
another five
in neighbouring towns were discovered and defused.
Police said Tuesday that another two bombs had been detected overnight
in Pattani province and safely defused.
An interior ministry official said police were investigating who was
behind the campaign.
A string of deadly bombings rocked Thailand's south in April, raising
speculation that a long-running Muslim insurgency was flaring up after
a quiet spell
of several years.
Agence France Presse - June 19, 2001
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