Reuters, Bangkok :
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha ordered security to be tightened in Bangkok on Monday after two small bombs rattled a luxury shopping mall and stoked tension in a city under martial law since a coup in May.
Two people were slightly hurt but the blasts caused little damage on Sunday evening. They were the first to shake the capital since the military seized power to end months of sometimes deadly street protests.
“I have ordered security to be tightened because this case involves the well-being of the people,” Prayuth told reporters.
“This case shows that we still need martial law … there are still bad people disrupting the peace. We must find ways to severely punish them.”
There was no claim of responsibility.
CCTV footage showed two possible suspects near where the pipe bombs exploded in the heart of one of Bangkok’s busiest shopping districts but the images were unclear and they had not been identified, police said.
Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said such violence “inflicts loss of confidence” in the country. Tourism accounts for about 10 percent of Thailand’s economy.
Political tension has been high since last month when a national assembly hand-picked by the junta banned former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra from politics for five years.
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha ordered security to be tightened in Bangkok on Monday after two small bombs rattled a luxury shopping mall and stoked tension in a city under martial law since a coup in May.
Two people were slightly hurt but the blasts caused little damage on Sunday evening. They were the first to shake the capital since the military seized power to end months of sometimes deadly street protests.
“I have ordered security to be tightened because this case involves the well-being of the people,” Prayuth told reporters.
“This case shows that we still need martial law … there are still bad people disrupting the peace. We must find ways to severely punish them.”
There was no claim of responsibility.
CCTV footage showed two possible suspects near where the pipe bombs exploded in the heart of one of Bangkok’s busiest shopping districts but the images were unclear and they had not been identified, police said.
Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said such violence “inflicts loss of confidence” in the country. Tourism accounts for about 10 percent of Thailand’s economy.
Political tension has been high since last month when a national assembly hand-picked by the junta banned former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra from politics for five years.
