Huge explosion rocks central Bangkok - casualties reported

[JHolmesJr]

Let me see if I got this right....guy sets off massive bomb killing and maiming over 120 people....then goes back to apartment and instead of getting the fuck out of dodge or laying low, starts making more bombs.....errr, ok.....you got my attention.

Someone better call the turkish embassy cos this guy may not be alive by the time theyre done waterboarding him.

 

[Susanoo]

Thai police say bomb-making tools found on shrine attack suspect match those used in both Bangkok blasts

PUBLISHED : Saturday, 29 August, 2015, 5:41pm
UPDATED : Saturday, 29 August, 2015, 11:57pm

Agencies

Thai police said the man fitted the description of a suspect seen leaving a rucksack at the site of the shrine. Photo: EPA

Police in Bangkok said on Saturday they have arrested a 28-year-old foreign man with a collection of fake passports who was "likely involved" in a deadly bomb attack at a shrine in the Thai capital nearly two weeks ago.

"I am confident that he is likely involved with the bomb attack," deputy national police chief General Chaktip Chaijinda told reporters in a live televised broadcast.

It was not clear whether he is the same man caught by security cameras and suspected of a second blast at a pier in the city one day later. Photo: EPA

Thai security forces raided an apartment in Nong Jok on the outskirts of eastern Bangkok earlier in the day and discovered detonators, ball bearings and a metal pipe that was likely intended to hold a bomb, a police spokesman said.

"The bomb materials are the same, similar or the same type" as those used in both bombings, police chief Somyot Poompanmoung told reporters, adding that the suspect had traveled in and out of Thailand since January 2014.

Thai Royal Police inspect the site where the suspect was arrested. Photo: Reuters

A second bombing at a Bangkok pier one day after the blast at Eshrine resulted in no casualties but amped up fears in the capital, which is no stranger to violence and unrest.

"He is a Turkish national," Colonel Banphot Phunphien, a spokesman for Thailand's Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC), told Agence France-Presse.

"He carries many passports. It's unusual how he carries so many passports," Banphot added.

But Chaktip suggested there was still uncertainty as the man's true nationality.

The Thai police said they do not think he is the actual bomber.

National police chief General Somyot Poompanmoung speaks to reporters outside the compound where the suspect was being detained in Bangkok. Photo: AFP

Japan's Kyodo news agency reported that two men had been arrested, but this ran contrary to remarks and statements by the Thai police.

Thailand's worst single mass-casualty attack occurred during evening rush hour in the city's Ratchaprasong shopping district on August 17 and resulted in 20 casualties, including 14 foreigners,with over 120 injured.

Among the dead were at least six Chinese nationals, including four from the mainland and two young women from Hong Kong. At least 30 more Chinese were wounded by the blast.

Shortly after news of the arrest was made public on Saturday afternoon, the Thai Royal Police supplied handout photos of the detained man.

The suspect, right, is shown with bomb-making materials after his arrest in Bangkok. Photo: EPA

Police earlier in the week released stills taken from security camera footage of a suspect in a second bombing at a Bangkok pier one day after the shrine attack, which resulted in no casualties.

It was unclear whether the man detained Saturday was the same person shown in the blurred photos by the pier.

Police seemed to lean against him being the suspect captured in grainy footage of the shrine shortly before the first blast went off, but were confident he had some connection to both incidents.

"Our preliminary investigation shows that he is related to both bombings," said spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri.

Police and soldiers secure the area outside the compound where the suspect was apprehended. Photo: AFP

The suspect "looks like the one we are looking for" in connection with the shrine blast, he added.

The bomb that tore through the city's crowded Erawan shrine was unprecedented in the Thai capital, where smaller bombs have been employed in domestic political violence over the past decade, but not in an effort to cause large-scale casualties.

The shrine is a popular tourist destination, particularly with Chinese visitors, who represent an important segment of the lucrative tourist market. At least six of the dead were from China and Hong Kong. It is located in a neighborhood full of upscale shopping malls and five-star hotels.

Soon after the bombing, police released an artist's sketch of a man seen in a security camera video leaving a backpack at a bench then walking away from the open-air shrine. A separate camera showed the man, wearing a yellow T-shirt, on the back of a motorcycle taxi leaving the site.

The two Hong Kong women who died were Vivian Chan Wing-yan, 19, and Arcadia Pang Wan-chee, 24. The photo shows Chan's Hong Kong ID card. Photo: SCMP Pictures

An arrest warrant earlier had described the unknown suspect as a "foreign man," although a military spokesman said a connection to international terrorism seemed unlikely.

No one has claimed responsibility for the blast, sparking a variety of theories into who might be behind it.

A woman holds incense sticks as she offers prayers at the reopened Erawan shrine. Photo: AFP

Possible suspects include parties seeking to avenge Thailand's forced repatriation of ethnic Uighurs to China, Muslim separatists from southern Thailand, opponents of Thailand's military government and feuding factions within the security services.

Criticism of the police investigation has been strong because few facts were clearly established, including the type of explosives used in the bombs.

Authorities were also accused of rapidly hosing down the crime scene at the shrine before all forensic evidence was recovered so it could be reopened to reassure the public - especially foreign tourists - that security in the city was back to normal.

Police say they have been handicapped by low-quality and broken surveillance cameras and a lack of sophisticated image-processing equipment to enhance the video they do have.

 

[Froggy]

"He carries many passports. It's unusual how he carries so many passports," Banphot added.

For people who live in Thailand or familiar with Thailand this statement is very funny. Thailand is well known to produce copy passports for criminals.

 

[ChaoPappyPoodle]

It early days to definitely point the finger at Muslims. From what I've read, the suspect is a foreigner with a fake Turkish passport. He isn't even the person in the photofit or even the bomber himself.

Let's see what else these police jokers will disclose.

You must be blind and also with an IQ problem. Almost everyone expects it to be a Muslim. Only question is it is the Turkish Mongoloids from Uighur or the Mats from south Thailand. Only these Pimp God worshipping group will do this kind of terrorist attacks. I heard that after this bombing the Mats in south Thailand kena gaugau and they deserve it. The Pimp God is useless against an army since can only set up brother in paradise.

 

[yinyang]

Phone data leads to bomb arrest
Ball bearings and bomb-Phone data leads to bomb arrest
Ball bearings and bomb-building equipment found in suspect's room.

Published: 30/08/2015 at 01:41 AM Bangkok Post
Newspaper section: News

Police say a painstaking process of tracing phone records led to Saturday’s arrest of a key suspect in the deadly Erawan Shrine bombing.

under arrest: Police are still working to confirm the identity of the suspect, who was apprehended at a Nong Chok apartment with a poor quality forgery of a Turkish passport.

A police source close to the investigation said the arrest of the foreign man, who is believed to be Turkish, came after investigators spent more than a week sifting through every mobile phone call made within the vicinity of the shrine around the time of the bombing on Aug 17.

He said officers managed to identify three Turkish phone numbers which had activated international roaming services and were in use near the blast site.

Police apparently traced one of those phone numbers to the suspect apprehended yesterday.

Around 100 police and soldiers moved in to make the arrest around 3pm at the Pool Anant apartment building in Nong Chok district, in the city’s eastern outskirts.

A military source said the suspect held a Turkish passport by the name of Adem Karadag, 28, although the document was later found to be fake.

A large quantity of bomb-making materials and equipment which allegedly belong to the suspect were seized from his rented room.

Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said “many” passports had also been found in the suspect’s room. They were confiscated as evidence and would be tested for authenticity.

Pol Gen Chakthip said it was unclear if the suspect is the same man seen on CCTV footage wearing a yellow T-shirt and depositing a backpack at the Erawan Shrine minutes before the bombing.

However, sources in the Metropolitan Police Bureau and the Crime Suppression Division said the suspect is not believed to be the bomber. Instead he is believed to be one of three individuals involved in orchestrating the blast, which killed 20 people and injured 130.

Authorities have linked the incident to another bomb which exploded in the water near the Sathon pier the following day. There were no injuries.

The police sources said the detained suspect is believed to have delivered the bomb to the suspect in the yellow T-shirt at Hua Lamphong train station, shortly before the bomber caught a tuk-tuk to the shrine to plant the device.

The sources added the Erawan Shrine and Sathon pier bombers may have already fled the country.

The detained suspect possibly remained in the country because he has problems with his travel document, the sources said. Even passing inspection of the fake passport showed several inconsistencies, the most notable being that the “date of expiry” line had been printed twice.

The suspect has been charged with possessing explosives without permission, said national police chief Somyot Poompanmuang.

He was remanded in military custody at an undisclosed location yesterday after being briefly detained for questioning at Nong Chok police station.

Before that, officers had searched five rooms at the apartment complex, four of which proved empty.

Crime Suppression Division commander Akkaradech Pimolsri said bomb making equipment and parts were found in the suspect’s room, including large packs of 5mm ball bearings, the same as the type used in the two bombings.

Also recovered were a detonator, batteries, electrical wires, a metal pipe, chemical containers and a gunpowder-stained shirt.

A police source said rental contracts showed all five rooms had been rented by a male Turkish passport holder named Ammet Mehmet Emin Ayse on January 27 last year.

Local residents living near the apartment building told reporters the suspect could not speak Thai and mostly kept to himself. Sometimes, he and several friends would eat at a local food stall.

Pol Gen Somyot and police spokesman Prawut Thawornsiri later inspected the apartment complex.

Pol Gen Somyot became visibly irritated when confronted by a reporter’s question as to whether the suspect was a scapegoat. “How can you ask such a question? Are you Thai? It’s completely unhelpful,” he said.

During the raid yesterday, police had cordoned off a 100-metre-wide area around the apartment building. One lane of Chuem Samphan Road adjacent to the apartment was also closed.

Col Noppasit Sithipongsophon, who led the military team in the joint search operation yesterday, said the detained suspect was “definitely involved” with the shrine bombing. equipment found in suspect's



.

 

[yinyang]

BOMBING ARRESTS

Thai woman sought for bomb attacks
Arrested Erawan blast suspect gives little away

Published: 31/08/2015 at 03:47 AM http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/security/674164/thai-woman-sought-for-bomb-attacks

Authorities are hunting for a Thai woman after materials believed to be used for bomb-making were seized from her room at an apartment in Min Buri district.

She was believed to know the perpetrators thought to be behind the Erawan shrine and Sathon pier bombings, according to police sources. The group was thought to be planning more attacks.

The woman is identified as "Misaloh", and rented room No.9106 at Maimuna Garden Home, an apartment in Bangkok's Min Buri district.

Interviewing the neighbourhood: Suspects 'kept to themselves'
Tracing the phones: Biggest data search ever
On Saturday night, a combined police and military force searched the room and confiscated several items which can be used to make bombs.

Found in the room include urea-based fertiliser, six 12x7cm bottles of flash powder, black and blue electrical wiring, four wristwatches, a table clock, a pack of bolts, decorative tree lights, an empty box for a walkie-talkie, a radio-controlled toy vehicle and a rucksack containing books. Police seized the items for examination.


The search was based on information gleaned from the foreigner suspect detained on Saturday in a raid at the Pool Anant apartment in Nong Chok district, where authorities seized bulk supplies of materials for making bombs, sources said.

The suspect is now being detained at the 11th Army Circle in Bangkok.

Following the Saturday night search, a team of 40 police and military officers went back Sunday to Maimuna Garden Home and searched the entire apartment again.

A welding tool was found in one room and seized for examination.

Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said police were deployed to five areas to track down more suspects. He declined to disclose the locations.

Police spokesman Prawut Thawornsiri said Sunday a network of foreign nationals is thought to be behind the Erawan shrine blast.

Pol Lt Gen Prawut said significant quantities of bomb-making materials including detonator cords and fuses seized from the suspect's room during Saturday's raid point to the possibility the suspect and his accomplices had several more targets in mind.

"There were large quantities of bomb-making materials including 10 detonator cords," said Pol Lt Gen Prawut, also assistant police chief.

The evidence has been sent for forensic examination and the findings will confirm if they are linked to the Erawan shrine and Sathon pier explosions, he said.

The police spokesman said the detained suspect, who cannot speak Thai, has so far denied any involvement in the Erawan shrine bombing, he said, adding authorities cannot confirm his identity or nationality.

"He gave a certain amount of cooperation, saying where he travelled from. But we don't believe everything he said. So far he has made no confession," he said.

Investigators are not ruling out any motives at this stage and it is too early to conclude what role the suspect played in the attacks.

It is believed many other people, some of whom are likely to be Thai nationals, are involved, said Pol Lt Gen Prawut. He did not give a number.

One of the possible motives is the blasts were an act of personal revenge after police recently cracked down on foreign criminals including those running fake passport syndicates.

It is possible the suspect is involved in a syndicate that makes counterfeit passports for nationals who entered Thailand on the quiet and wanted to travel to a third country, he said. More than 200 fake passports were seized from the suspect's room, which lends weight to this theory, he said.

Police investigators have confirmed the two attacks are linked based on the type of the explosive devices used.


Geography of the attacks: According to current reports, the bombers and helpers rented rooms at two apartment houses in Min Buri and Nong Chok districts in Northeast Bangkok, and travelled to the two sites where they set their deadly explosives. (Map by Google Maps)

The Erawan shrine blast on Aug 17 killed 20 people and injured 130 more while the other bomb which exploded in the water near the Sathon pier the following day caused no injuries.

Pol Lt Gen Prawut said other pieces of evidence such as records of phone calls are also being examined. There are photos of possible accomplices in the suspect's phone that police are trying to verify.

Police are also questioning the cab driver who drove the yellow-shirt suspected bomber to Hua Lamphong station after he was found to have been contacted by the phone numbers which are thought to belong to the suspects.

The cab driver might have hidden some information from police but so far he has not been charged or detained, he said. He said it cannot be confirmed if the arrested man is one of the two suspects facing arrest warrants.

Besides the yellow-shirt man, an arrest warrant was issued for a man seen dropping a plastic bag with an explosive device near Sathon pier on Aug 17.

"He is one of the network definitely. Give police some time. There are several leads to follow and jobs to be done," he said.

A source in the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) said police and military officers are jointly questioning the arrested suspect and authorities are not ruling out any possibilities including human trafficking.

 

[ChaoPappyPoodle]

The Religion of Pieces again involved in mass murder. :oIo: How not to murder when you read this kind of satan stories from Quran?


BANGKOK — Arrest warrants for a Thai woman and a foreign national suspected of involvement in the bomb attacks earlier this month were issued this afternoon following a second raid conducted in the capital’s Min Buri district.
http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1441001720

Quran (2:191-193) - "And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah [disbelief or unrest] is worse than killing...
but if they desist, then lo! Allah is forgiving and merciful. And fight them until there is no more Fitnah [disbelief and worshipping of others along with Allah] and worship is for Allah alone. But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against Az-Zalimun (the polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc.)" (Translation is from the Noble Quran) The verse prior to this (190) refers to "fighting for the cause of Allah those who fight you" leading some to believe that the entire passage refers to a defensive war in which Muslims are defending their homes and families. The historical context of this passage is not defensive warfare, however, since Muhammad and his Muslims had just relocated to Medina and were not under attack by their Meccan adversaries. In fact, the verses urge offensive warfare, in that Muslims are to drive Meccans out of their own city (which they later did). Verse 190 thus means to fight those who offer resistance to Allah's rule (ie. Muslim conquest). The use of the word "persecution" by some Muslim translators is disingenuous (the actual Arabic words for persecution - "idtihad" - and oppression - a variation of "z-l-m" - do not appear in the verse). The word used instead, "fitna", can mean disbelief, or the disorder that results from unbelief or temptation. This is certainly what is meant in this context since the violence is explicitly commissioned "until religion is for Allah" - ie. unbelievers desist in their unbelief.

Quran (2:244) - "Then fight in the cause of Allah, and know that Allah Heareth and knoweth all things."

Quran (2:216) - "Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not." Not only does this verse establish that violence can be virtuous, but it also contradicts the myth that fighting is intended only in self-defense, since the audience was obviously not under attack at the time. From the Hadith, we know that this verse was narrated at a time that Muhammad was actually trying to motivate his people into raiding merchant caravans for loot.

Quran (3:56) - "As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to help."

Quran (3:151) - "Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority". This speaks directly of polytheists, yet it also includes Christians, since they believe in the Trinity (ie. what Muhammad incorrectly believed to be 'joining companions to Allah').

Quran (4:74) - "Let those fight in the way of Allah who sell the life of this world for the other. Whoso fighteth in the way of Allah, be he slain or be he victorious, on him We shall bestow a vast reward." The martyrs of Islam are unlike the early Christians, who were led meekly to the slaughter. These Muslims are killed in battle as they attempt to inflict death and destruction for the cause of Allah. This is the theological basis for today's suicide bombers.

Quran (4:76) - "Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah…"

Quran (4:89) - "They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks."

Quran (4:95) - "Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home), except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame, etc.), and those who strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with their wealth and their lives. Allah has preferred in grades those who strive hard and fight with their wealth and their lives above those who sit (at home). Unto each, Allah has promised good (Paradise), but Allah has preferred those who strive hard and fight, above those who sit (at home) by a huge reward " This passage criticizes "peaceful" Muslims who do not join in the violence, letting them know that they are less worthy in Allah's eyes. It also demolishes the modern myth that "Jihad" doesn't mean holy war in the Quran, but rather a spiritual struggle. Not only is this Arabic word (mujahiduna) used in this passage, but it is clearly not referring to anything spiritual, since the physically disabled are given exemption. (The Hadith reveals the context of the passage to be in response to a blind man's protest that he is unable to engage in Jihad, which would not make sense if it meant an internal struggle). According to the verse, Allah will allow the disabled into Paradise, but will provide a larger reward to those who are able to kill others in his cause.

Quran (4:104) - "And be not weak hearted in pursuit of the enemy; if you suffer pain, then surely they (too) suffer pain as you suffer pain..." Is pursuing an injured and retreating enemy really an act of self-defense?

Quran (5:33) - "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement"

Quran (8:12) - "I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them" No reasonable person would interpret this to mean a spiritual struggle.

Quran (8:15) - "O ye who believe! When ye meet those who disbelieve in battle, turn not your backs to them. (16)Whoso on that day turneth his back to them, unless maneuvering for battle or intent to join a company, he truly hath incurred wrath from Allah, and his habitation will be hell, a hapless journey's end."

Quran (8:39) - "And fight with them until there is no more fitna (disorder, unbelief) and religion should be only for Allah" Some translations interpret "fitna" as "persecution", but the traditional understanding of this word is not supported by the historical context (See notes for 2:193). The Meccans were simply refusing Muhammad access to their city during Haj. Other Muslims were allowed to travel there - just not as an armed group, since Muhammad had declared war on Mecca prior to his eviction. The Meccans were also acting in defense of their religion, since it was Muhammad's intention to destroy their idols and establish Islam by force (which he later did). Hence the critical part of this verse is to fight until "religion is only for Allah", meaning that the true justification of violence was the unbelief of the opposition. According to the Sira (Ibn Ishaq/Hisham 324) Muhammad further explains that "Allah must have no rivals."

Quran (8:57) - "If thou comest on them in the war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are behind them, that haply they may remember."

Quran (8:67) - "It is not for a Prophet that he should have prisoners of war until he had made a great slaughter in the land..."

Quran (8:59-60) - "And let not those who disbelieve suppose that they can outstrip (Allah's Purpose). Lo! they cannot escape. Make ready for them all thou canst of (armed) force and of horses tethered, that thereby ye may dismay the enemy of Allah and your enemy."

Quran (8:65) - "O Prophet, exhort the believers to fight..."

Quran (9:5) - "So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captive and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them." According to this verse, the best way of staying safe from Muslim violence is to convert to Islam (prayer (salat) and the poor tax (zakat) are among the religion's Five Pillars). This popular claim that the Quran only inspires violence within the context of self-defense is seriously challenged by this passage as well, since the Muslims to whom it was written were obviously not under attack. Had they been, then there would have been no waiting period (earlier verses make it a duty for Muslims to fight in self-defense, even during the sacred months). The historical context is Mecca after the idolaters were subjugated by Muhammad and posed no threat. Once the Muslims had power, they violently evicted those unbelievers who would not convert.

Quran (9:14) - "Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands and disgrace them and give you victory over them and heal the breasts of a believing people." Humiliating and hurting non-believers not only has the blessing of Allah, but it is ordered as a means of carrying out his punishment and even "healing" the hearts of Muslims.

Quran (9:20) - "Those who believe, and have left their homes and striven with their wealth and their lives in Allah's way are of much greater worth in Allah's sight. These are they who are triumphant." The Arabic word interpreted as "striving" in this verse is the same root as "Jihad". The context is obviously holy war.

Quran (9:29) - "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." "People of the Book" refers to Christians and Jews. According to this verse, they are to be violently subjugated, with the sole justification being their religious status. Verse 9:33 tells Muslims that Allah has charted them to make Islam "superior over all religions." This chapter was one of the final "revelations" from Allah and it set in motion the tenacious military expansion, in which Muhammad's companions managed to conquer two-thirds of the Christian world in the next 100 years. Islam is intended to dominate all other people and faiths.

Quran (9:30) - "And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!"

Quran (9:38-39) - "O ye who believe! what is the matter with you, that, when ye are asked to go forth in the cause of Allah, ye cling heavily to the earth? Do ye prefer the life of this world to the Hereafter? But little is the comfort of this life, as compared with the Hereafter. Unless ye go forth, He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place." This is a warning to those who refuse to fight, that they will be punished with Hell.

Quran (9:41) - "Go forth, light-armed and heavy-armed, and strive with your wealth and your lives in the way of Allah! That is best for you if ye but knew." See also the verse that follows (9:42) - "If there had been immediate gain (in sight), and the journey easy, they would (all) without doubt have followed thee, but the distance was long, (and weighed) on them" This contradicts the myth that Muslims are to fight only in self-defense, since the wording implies that battle will be waged a long distance from home (in another country and on Christian soil, in this case, according to the historians).

Quran (9:73) - "O Prophet! strive hard against the unbelievers and the hypocrites and be unyielding to them; and their abode is hell, and evil is the destination." Dehumanizing those who reject Islam, by reminding Muslims that unbelievers are merely firewood for Hell, makes it easier to justify slaughter. It also explains why today's devout Muslims have little regard for those outside the faith.

Quran (9:88) - "But the Messenger, and those who believe with him, strive and fight with their wealth and their persons: for them are (all) good things: and it is they who will prosper."

Quran (9:111) - "Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Quran: and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? then rejoice in the bargain which ye have concluded: that is the achievement supreme." How does the Quran define a true believer?

Quran (9:123) - "O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you and let them find in you hardness."

Quran (17:16) - "And when We wish to destroy a town, We send Our commandment to the people of it who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word proves true against it, so We destroy it with utter destruction." Note that the crime is moral transgression, and the punishment is "utter destruction." (Before ordering the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden first issued Americans an invitation to Islam).

Quran (18:65-81) - This parable lays the theological groundwork for honor killings, in which a family member is murdered because they brought shame to the family, either through apostasy or perceived moral indiscretion. The story (which is not found in any Jewish or Christian source) tells of Moses encountering a man with "special knowledge" who does things which don't seem to make sense on the surface, but are then justified according to later explanation. One such action is to murder a youth for no apparent reason (74). However, the wise man later explains that it was feared that the boy would "grieve" his parents by "disobedience and ingratitude." He was killed so that Allah could provide them a 'better' son. (Note: This is one reason why honor killing is sanctioned by Sharia. Reliance of the Traveler (Umdat al-Saliq) says that punishment for murder is not applicable when a parent or grandparent kills their offspring (o.1.1-2).)

Quran (21:44) - "We gave the good things of this life to these men and their fathers until the period grew long for them; See they not that We gradually reduce the land (in their control) from its outlying borders? Is it then they who will win?"

Quran (25:52) - "Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost strenuousness..." "Strive against" is Jihad - obviously not in the personal context. It's also significant to point out that this is a Meccan verse.

Quran (33:60-62) - "If the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease, and the alarmists in the city do not cease, We verily shall urge thee on against them, then they will be your neighbors in it but a little while. Accursed, they will be seized wherever found and slain with a (fierce) slaughter." This passage sanctions the slaughter (rendered "merciless" and "horrible murder" in other translations) against three groups: Hypocrites (Muslims who refuse to "fight in the way of Allah" (3:167) and hence don't act as Muslims should), those with "diseased hearts" (which include Jews and Christians 5:51-52), and "alarmists" or "agitators who include those who merely speak out against Islam, according to Muhammad's biographers. It is worth noting that the victims are to be sought out by Muslims, which is what today's terrorists do. If this passage is meant merely to apply to the city of Medina, then it is unclear why it is included in Allah's eternal word to Muslim generations.

Quran (47:3-4) - "Those who disbelieve follow falsehood, while those who believe follow the truth from their Lord... So, when you meet (in fight Jihad in Allah's Cause), those who disbelieve smite at their necks till when you have killed and wounded many of them, then bind a bond firmly (on them, i.e. take them as captives)... If it had been Allah's Will, He Himself could certainly have punished them (without you). But (He lets you fight), in order to test you, some with others. But those who are killed in the Way of Allah, He will never let their deeds be lost." Those who reject Allah are to be killed in Jihad. The wounded are to be held captive for ransom. The only reason Allah doesn't do the dirty work himself is to to test the faithfulness of Muslims. Those who kill pass the test.

Quran (47:35) - "Be not weary and faint-hearted, crying for peace, when ye should be uppermost (Shakir: "have the upper hand") for Allah is with you,"

Quran (48:17) - "There is no blame for the blind, nor is there blame for the lame, nor is there blame for the sick (that they go not forth to war). And whoso obeyeth Allah and His messenger, He will make him enter Gardens underneath which rivers flow; and whoso turneth back, him will He punish with a painful doom." Contemporary apologists sometimes claim that Jihad means 'spiritual struggle.' Is so, then why are the blind, lame and sick exempted? This verse also says that those who do not fight will suffer torment in hell.

Quran (48:29) - "Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And those with him are hard (ruthless) against the disbelievers and merciful among themselves" Islam is not about treating everyone equally. This verse tells Muslims that there are two very distinct standards that are applied based on religious status. Also the word used for 'hard' or 'ruthless' in this verse shares the same root as the word translated as 'painful' or severe' to describe Hell in over 25 other verses including 65:10, 40:46 and 50:26..

Quran (61:4) - "Surely Allah loves those who fight in His way" Religion of Peace, indeed! The verse explicitly refers to "battle array" meaning that it is speaking of physical conflict. This is followed by (61:9): "He it is who has sent His Messenger (Mohammed) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam) to make it victorious over all religions even though the infidels may resist." (See next verse, below). Infidels who resist Islamic rule are to be fought.

Quran (61:10-12) - "O You who believe! Shall I guide you to a commerce that will save you from a painful torment. That you believe in Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad ), and that you strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with your wealth and your lives, that will be better for you, if you but know! (If you do so) He will forgive you your sins, and admit you into Gardens under which rivers flow, and pleasant dwelling in Gardens of 'Adn - Eternity ['Adn (Edn) Paradise], that is indeed the great success." This verse refers to physical battle in order to make Islam victorious over other religions (see above). It uses the Arabic word, Jihad.

Quran (66:9) - "O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be stern with them. Hell will be their home, a hapless journey's end." The root word of "Jihad" is used again here. The context is clearly holy war, and the scope of violence is broadened to include "hypocrites" - those who call themselves Muslims but do not act as such.

Other verses calling Muslims to Jihad can be found here at AnsweringIslam.org

 

[THE_CHANSTER]

Are you f**king kidding me?
Is this some sort of sick joke??


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-34105305

 

[Susanoo]

Thai police give themselves US$84,000 reward meant for the public for Bangkok bomb suspect arrest

PUBLISHED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 4:14pm
UPDATED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 4:19pm

Agence France-Presse

National police chief Somyot Poompanmoung holds a cash reward at a press conference in Bangkok. Photo: AP

Thailand’s police chief announced today he was handing his own officers a reward of some US$84,000 for apprehending a man who has been charged in connection with this month’s deadly Bangkok bomb blast.

Police General Somyot Poompanmoung held up three million baht in cash in tightly stacked notes which he said would be distributed amongst his men following the arrest of a foreign man on Saturday.

“One million baht comes from me, the other two million baht came from my businessmen friends who do not want to be named,” he told reporters at a press conference at police headquarters.

Thai police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri holds a tablet displaying a picture of an unnamed foreign man, wanted for questioning after bomb making materials were found in a Bangkok apartment. Photo: AFP

Somyot said the reward money was going to the police because the public had not helped in tracking down the man.

“It is clear that it was the authorities alone,” he said, adding they had not received tip-offs from the public.

Police and private citizens had previously offered rewards for information that led to the capture of anyone involved in the deadly blast. It is unclear if there is a reward still available for the public.

The Saturday arrest was the first major breakthrough in an investigation that appeared to have stalled following the August 17 blast, Thailand’s worst single mass-casualty attack.

Police came under pressure in the days after the blast for failing to a make a swift arrest despite having CCTV footage of the alleged bomber.

">

Evidence found at the second apartment which was raided by authorities in Min Buri, in Bangkok's outskirts yesterday. Photo: AP

They have also been criticised for giving contradictory and confusing statements on the progress of the probe.

The unnamed foreign man, who remains in military custody, was allegedly found with bomb-making equipment and multiple fake passports at a flat on the outskirts of Bangkok on Saturday.

On Monday police announced they were also looking for two more suspects, a Thai woman and an unidentified man, after bomb paraphernalia was allegedly found at a second nearby flat.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the blast at the popular Erawan shrine in central Bangkok which left 20 people dead.

Thais routinely complain that their police are better at extracting street-side bribes than detective work.

Senior police officers are often exceedingly wealthy and it is not unknown for them to have extensive business ties on top of their policing duties.

Before his appointment as police chief after last year’s coup Somyot declared his assets at US$11.5 million including income from advising companies as well as property holdings and investments.

A loyalist of junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha, he had vowed to transfer, arrest or prosecute all graft-tainted officers.

True to his word, he has nailed several senior policemen, including the head of Thailand’s elite Central Investigation Bureau -- jailed with his deputy in January for defaming the royal family while running a criminal empire from inside the police.

 

[Susanoo]

Thai police issue arrest warrants for new suspects after raid finds bomb materials in second apartment

PUBLISHED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 1:35pm
UPDATED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 4:28pm

Associated Press in Bangkok

Artist sketches of two new suspects Thai police are hunting. On Sunday, Thai soldiers and police searched more apartments as the bombing probe widened. Photos: EPA

Thai police probing a deadly bombing two weeks ago issued arrest warrants on Monday for two new suspects after a raid on a suburban apartment block uncovered possible bomb-making materials.

Police were hunting for a 26-year-old Thai female and a foreign man after a weekend search on a property in the Min Buri district uncovered fertiliser, digital watches and an explosives detonator, police spokesman Prawuth Thavornsiri said in a televised announcement.

“These are bomb-making materials,” Prawuth said. “Nobody would keep urea fertiliser and gunpowder unless they wanted to make a bomb.”

Min Buri is near the neighbourhood where police on Saturday arrested an unnamed foreigner and seized a trove of bomb-making equipment that included detonators, ball bearings and a metal pipe they believe was intended to hold a bomb.

A suspect who was arrested Saturday.

Saturday’s arrest was the first possible breakthrough in the investigation into the August 17 blast at the Erawan Shrine, which killed 20 people, including two from Hong Kong.

Much remains unknown about the suspect, including his nationality, his motive, his relationship to the alleged bombing network or if he was plotting an attack, Prawuth said, adding that another attack was “possible” because police found 10 detonators.

“We still have to work out the details,” he said. “But we are very certain he’s part of the network” that carried out the bombing.

On Sunday, Prawuth said that that the interrogation was proceeding slowly.

“He is not cooperating much. From our preliminary investigation, we think he isn’t telling us the truth,” Prawuth said, declining to elaborate. “He told us how he entered Thailand but we don’t believe everything he says.”

He said police were working with “a number of embassies” and interpreters to try to establish the man’s nationality, adding that he did not speak Thai but spoke some English.

Authorities have dodged questions about whether the suspect is believed to be Turkish, saying that he was travelling on a fake passport. Images circulated online after his arrest of a fake Turkish passport with the apparent suspect’s picture.

“We don’t know if he is Turkish or not,” Prawuth said.

The Turkish Embassy in Bangkok could not immediately be reached for comment. A Turkish government spokesman contacted over the weekend in Istanbul said he had no information on the suspect or any possible Turkish link to the attack.

The blast at the Erawan Shrine was unprecedented in the Thai capital, where smaller bombs have been employed in domestic political violence over the past decade, but not in an effort to cause large-scale casualties.

Additional reporting by Reuters

 

[NanoSpeed]

Thai police give themselves US$84,000 reward meant for the public for Bangkok bomb suspect arrest

PUBLISHED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 4:14pm
UPDATED : Monday, 31 August, 2015, 4:19pm

Agence France-Presse

This is funny. The officers are performing their duty, aren't they ? It's part and parcel of their job. The person arrested is only a suspect, not the culprit.

Thai police must be thinking they are some sort of professional footballers participating in a Cup Tournament. Reward for police ???

 

[Susanoo]

Bangkok bomb 'suspect' living in Turkey, denies involvement

AFP
September 1, 2015, 3:13 am

Bangkok (AFP) - The hunt for a group behind the Bangkok shrine blast narrowed Monday as police revealed they had two new suspects -- one of whom told AFP she was innocent and living in Turkey.

Two weeks after the unprecedented bombing at the Erawan shrine brought carnage to the city's commercial centre, killing 20 people in Thailand's worst single mass-casualty attack, the motive for the blast remains shrouded in mystery.

Suspicion over the August 17 attack has alternated between Thailand's bitter political rivals, organised criminal gangs, Islamist militants, rebels in the kingdom's strife-torn south and sympathisers of refugees from China's Uighur minority.

Police are now seeking a Thai woman and an unidentified man after bomb-making materials were discovered over the weekend in an apartment in the suburb of Minburi.

Investigators believe it was used as a hideout by the network that carried out the attack.

"We found fertiliser bags, watches, radio controls -- parts to make bombs and electric charges," said national police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri. "We are confident they are the same group."

Police had detained an unidentified foreign man on Saturday morning at another flat nearby, where detonators, industrial pipes and ball bearings were found.

Dozens of fake Turkish passports were also found in his flat, police added.

- Photographs broadcast -

In a televised broadcast Prawut displayed a photograph of the wanted Thai woman taken from an official identity card, showing her wearing a black headscarf.

He said an arrest warrant had been issued for 26-year-old Wanna Suansan -- also known by the Muslim name Misaloh -- from the southern province of Phang Nga, the first time a suspect in the bombing probe has been identified.

A sketch of an unidentified man with a moustache was also broadcast.

Speaking to AFP by telephone, a woman who identified herself as Wanna said she was currently living in the central Turkish city of Kayseri with her husband and that she was last in Thailand three months ago.

"I have not been to that apartment for almost one year now," she said, adding that she had sublet the flat to a friend of her husband's.

The woman, whose identity AFP could not further confirm, said she was horrified to learn via a Thai friend she had been named as a suspect.

"I was very shocked and thought my friend was joking with me," she said, adding she had been in contact with Thai police and was happy to cooperate with investigators.

Thai police refused to confirm or deny whether they believe Wanna is in Turkey.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, allowing speculation to fill the information gap -- with the ruling junta and police at times appearing to contradict each other.

- Uighur connection played down -

Authorities have been at pains to play down any suggestion the attack was launched by international terrorists or targeted Chinese visitors, in a nation where tourism represents nearly 10 percent of the economy.

In July, Thailand deported 109 Uighurs to China, enraging supporters of the minority who allege they face torture and repression back home.

Turkish protesters stormed the Thai consulate in Istanbul and forced it to close at the time.

Police have said the only suspect in custody, whom pictures showed was thin with heavy stubble, was part of a crime group who helped illegal migrants obtain counterfeit documents -- and that the attack on the shrine was retaliation for a crackdown on their lucrative trade.

Asked if the detainee was linked with smuggling Uighur migrants to Thailand, junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha refused to rule out the theory.

"Everything is partly involved," he told reporters in a typically cryptic answer.

But some analysts have poured cold water on the idea of crime gangs going to such extremes of violence.

"If it was linked to organised crime, where's the profit motive? How does killing 20 innocent civilians help your business?" Zachary Abuza, an expert on Southeast Asian militant groups, told AFP.

The junta, which has pegged its legitimacy to upholding security and reviving the flagging economy, may have pushed the police into "unsubstantiated hypotheses", Abuza added.

Police have also said they were working with "several embassies" to try to ascertain the identity of the detained foreigner, who is being held in military custody.

Officials initially said he was not cooperating with his interrogators as they brought in multiple translators, including an English speaker.

But on Monday police chief Somyot Poompanmoung told reporters the suspect's interrogation had yielded "very useful" information.

 

[Susanoo]

Chinese still flock to 'lucky' Bangkok shrine hit by blast

AFP
September 1, 2015, 12:25 am

Bangkok (AFP) - Two weeks on from the Bangkok bombing, the shrine devastated by the attack has lost none of its lustre for ethnic Chinese devotees who have long flocked there hoping their prayers will be answered.

The statue of Hinduism's four-faced god Brahma is currently shrouded on all sides by a white sheet as artisans restore damage caused by shrapnel from the bomb blast which struck on a busy Monday evening a fortnight ago.

The attack cut down 20 people, mostly ethnic Chinese from across Asia, turning a serene place of worship into a warzone vignette.

But Shen Lin, a tourist from China's southern Guangdong province, said the attack would never stop him coming to a place he tries to visit every time he passes through the Thai capital.

"People pray for wealth, and some pray to give birth to a boy," he told AFP Monday as devotees prayed with incense sticks clasped in their hands and placed marigolds around the shrine.

"I've been here more than ten times. I bring my friends here," he added.

Chen Bing-bing, a 26-year-old designer from the mainland, said her family were anxious about her going to Bangkok.

"But I think it's okay," she said in Mandarin.

"After it (the bomb) happened, they increased security here. And I think each person has his or her own destiny, so I don't worry too much," she added.

The Erawan shrine, which sits at the foot of a luxury hotel, was built in 1956 to appease superstitious construction workers after a series of workplace mishaps.

It is beloved by locals in a country where the majority Buddhist faith has long absorbed Hinduism's traditions and many of its pantheon of gods.

But in recent years ethnic Chinese devotees have also flocked to the shrine, partially fuelled by glowing reports from Hong Kong and mainland celebrities who say the shrine granted them good fortune.

The shrine is so popular among that demographic that many of the attendants who sweep away the marigolds and incense sticks speak competent Mandarin and Cantonese.

Thai authorities have played down any suggestion the attack was launched by international terrorists or specifically targeted Chinese tourists.

Speculation has grown over involvement by China's ethnic Uighur Muslim minority, or their co-religious sympathisers, after Thailand forcibly deported more than 100 Uighur refugees last month to an uncertain fate in China.

But Chinese worshippers at the shrine Monday said they did not believe they had been singled out.

"It's just a rumour," said Wu Kun, a mainland tourist.

"We don't hear any official news about whether it's an attack targeted to Chinese or not. I don't care too much," he added.

 

[da dick]

You must be blind and also with an IQ problem. Almost everyone expects it to be a Muslim. Only question is it is the Turkish Mongoloids from Uighur or the Mats from south Thailand. Only these Pimp God worshipping group will do this kind of terrorist attacks. I heard that after this bombing the Mats in south Thailand kena gaugau and they deserve it. The Pimp God is useless against an army since can only set up brother in paradise.

i'm surprised it's turkey though. turks are still mostly secular. and he look almost angmo.

 

[ChaoPappyPoodle]

i'm surprised it's turkey though. turks are still mostly secular. and he look almost angmo.

Turkish government is Islamist. This means majority of Turks are Islamist. They supported ISIS for a long time already. As long as Muslim they are easy to convince to commit to make terror attack. Turks are mixed breed of people. Arab, Mongol, Chinese, Caucasian blood are in their mix. The Thai bombers most likely are Uighurs who are Turkish descendents.

 

[yinyang]

BOMBING ARRESTS

Bomb pair in Cambodia, say police
PM says gang may have Uighur trafficking links

Published: 1/09/2015 at 03:47 AM http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/security/675552/bomb-pair-in-cambodia-say-police

Police believe the two prime bombing suspects in the Erawan and Sathon pier explosions are hiding in Cambodia and have asked Phnom Penh authorities to hunt them down, a Crime Suppression Division (CSD) source said Monday.

Meanwhile, a reporter on Monday night spoke with the most-wanted Thai Muslim woman, who said she has been in Turkey for the past three months and was "shocked" to be accused of the crime on national Thai TV.

A woman who said she is Wanna Suansan, 26, of Phang-nga, with the Muslim name Maisaroh, told a reporter said she had already spoken with police via telephone. Later, she said officers from Bangkok had called her back to tell her not to speak to the media.

A police source said that checks of the woman's travel records found that she left for Dubai on July 1.

Authorities told the Bangkok Post they had spoken to "a relative" of Ms Wanna, who said she is in Turkey and she would be willing to return to Thailand to meet with officers.

In a third, confusing development, police also told the Bangkok Post they are not actually convinced Ms Wanna had left Thailand. They said witnesses told them they had seen her and the man from the identikit sketch were seen at the Min Buri apartment between Aug 10-20. The Erawan bomb blast was on Aug 17.

Also on Monday, the prime minister admitted that the network involved in the bombings could be linked to human trafficking rings smuggling Uighurs.

A police source said Monday that CSD chief Akkaradej Pimonsri has instructed his deputy, Pol Col Itthipol Atchariyapradit, to ask Cambodian authorities to track down the world's two most-wanted men.

Security expert: Second target likely was Asiatique
Earlier report: Police release two new arrest warrants
That move came after checks by the Immigration Bureau found the pair entered the Cambodian town of Poipet through the Aranyaprathet border checkpoint in Sa Kaeo. The source said that, "Police expect to arrest them shortly".

Based on CCTV footage, one suspect is the man in the yellow T-shirt who allegedly planted the bomb at the Erawan shrine.

The other suspect is a man in a blue shirt who dropped a plastic bag with a suspected explosive device from a footbridge across Sathon canal on Aug 17.

The two are among four suspects wanted on arrest warrants.

The Min Buri court approved a police request on Monday for arrest warrants for two more suspects - Ms Wanna, described officially as a Thai woman from Phang-nga, and a man of unknown nationality.

Police spokesman Prawut Thawornsiri said the warrant named Wanna Suansan, who rented a room at Maimuna Garden Home, an apartment building in Bangkok's Min Buri district. The woman also goes by the Muslim name "Maisaroh".

The second arrest warrant is for an unidentified man who shared the room, police said.

A combined police and military force searched the room on Saturday night and confiscated several items used to make bombs.

They included urea-based fertiliser, bottles of flash powder, a radio-controlled vehicle, bolts, decorative lights that could be used as a detonator, and four wristwatches.

A police source said that checks of the woman's travel records found that she left for Dubai on July 1.

Authorities spoke to a relative who said she is now in Turkey and she would be willing to return to Thailand to meet with officers.

Police, however, are not convinced she has left the country as witnesses at the apartment said Ms Wanna and the man from the identikit sketch were seen at the apartment between Aug 10-20.

Police also discovered that Ms Wanna has a Turkish husband, said the source.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said the foreign suspect arrested on Saturday might be linked with human trafficking rings smuggling Uighurs.

Some groups could benefit from Uighurs seeking to flee China by making them fake passports, Gen Prayut said.

Gen Prayut also stressed the need for investigators to find out where the suspect bought the bomb-making materials. "The priority is that we must stop perpetrators from being able to obtain bomb-making components in this country," he said.

The prime minister said rental apartments and hotels must carry out stringent background checks when people check in.

Despite only one arrest and no confirmation that he was one of the bombers, national police chief Somyot Poompunmuang awarded a 3-million-baht reward to members of the police team that arrested the man.

The police chief confirmed the arrest of the suspect was the result of arduous work by the investigation team led by Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda, the deputy police chief who will succeed him on Oct 1.

Other members of the team included Special Branch police led by Pol Lt Gen Chaiwat Ketworachai, Central Investigation Bureau police led by Pol Lt Gen Thitirat Nonghanpithak and Metropolitan Police led by Pol Lt Gen Srivarah Rangsipramanakul.

Police on Saturday arrested a foreign suspect in a raid at the Pool Anant apartment in Nong Chok district, where they also seized material for making bombs and forged Turkish passports. The suspect's nationality is still unknown.

A military source revealed that the suspect identified himself as Bilan Muhammad, 47, and is now being detained at the 11th Army Circle in Bangkok.

The source also said the man illegally entered Thailand through the northern border and has lived here for almost one year. He can speak English and Arabic. Authorities used an Arabic translator during questioning.

However, police will verify the forged Turkish passports with officials at the Turkish embassy to determine if the suspect is a Turkish national, the source said.


This "man in the blue T-shirt" was seen on CCTV removing his backpack and kicking it into the khlong, possibly discarding a bomb that was meant to explode at Asiatique.

 

[yinyang]

Analysis and opinion from security consultant IHS-Jane

BANGKOK BOMBING

Attacks push Thailand into globalised era
Published: 1/09/2015 at 05:40 AM http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/676036

Since the Aug 17 blast at the Erawan shrine there has been no shortage of misstatements and missteps from the authorities. But the arrest of a key suspect on Saturday afternoon marked real success and a potential breakthrough in the nation's worst-ever bomb attack.

For that success to be effectively exploited, however, it is important the security services recognise squarely that the Erawan atrocity was the not the fumbling revenge of a locally-based criminal gang facing a police "crackdown", but rather a well-planned and technically sophisticated international terrorist operation.

All the more striking for the fact it appears to have been organised at remarkable speed, the scale of the attack has effectively propelled the threat to Thailand's security, along with the response necessary to counter it, into the modern globalised era.

There can be no doubt that on Bangkok's Black Monday terrorist planners envisaged two mass-casualty attacks, not one, and they were intended to be broadly simultaneous. The first struck the Erawan shrine killing 20 and wounding over 130. The target of the second was not the bottom of a canal at Sathon pier or even the pier itself but somewhere else on the Chao Phraya river that would have doubled the carnage.

CCTV footage from the pier on Monday night provides telling clues as to what probably happened. Curiously it was not released by the police soon after the explosion the next day, but leaked to the media only several days later.

The footage shows an "Asian-looking" man in a blue shirt carrying a bag containing the bomb arriving at the pedestrian bridge over the canal to the ferry pier around 7.20pm -- 24 minutes after the blast at the shrine. Standing against the railing, he hesitates on the bridge for two-and-a-half minutes and makes two phone calls. His problem was almost certainly the same as that facing thousands of other Bangkok commuters every day: he was running late.


This "man in the blue T-shirt" was seen on CCTV removing his backpack and kicking it into the khlong, possibly discarding a bomb that was meant to explode at Asiatique.

Had his target been the pier as has been widely suggested he needed only to walk a further 30 metres over the bridge, leave the bomb under a bench amid waiting passengers and walk away to detonate it remotely. Instead he waited until the bridge was clear and pushed the bomb with his foot into the canal where it exploded harmlessly around 1.30pm the next day.

So what was the target that brought the bomber to Sathon pier? Short of a confession from the suspect now in custody it is difficult to be sure, but it is likely to have been a reasonably short boat-ride away and unlikely to have been another pier, an empty temple or an international hotel with in-house security. The weight of probability falls heavily on the Asiatique night market, a crowded riverside complex of restaurants and handicraft shops popular with east Asian, and mainly Chinese, tourists. Asiatique is a 10-minute ferry ride from Sathon pier with a shuttle service transporting tourists directly to the complex free of charge.

For those disembarking on and before Aug 17 there were no bag checks. Currently, soldiers rather than private security guards are conducting thorough searches of all bags both at the ferry dock and the road entrance to the complex on Charoen Krung Road.

If Asiatique was the intended second target it is easy to understand the bomber's hesitation and the decision -- taken either in consultation with his handler or on his own initiative -- to abort the mission. By the time he reached the complex it would have been at least 7.40pm; and by the time he had planted the bomb and exited onto Charoen Krung Road, probably 7.55pm -- a full hour after the Erawan blast.

By then news of the attack on TV and smartphones would have reached local staff at Asiatique if not many tourists. The risk for a lone male lugging a bag and looking to plant a second bomb was increasing by the minute.

There is one striking inference to be drawn from the aborting of the second attack, a serious setback to the overall operation. Despite the evident professionalism in the planning and targeting and assembling of two sophisticated bombs, the execution of both attacks was clumsier, mainly because it relied on operatives with apparently little or no local knowledge, both of whom needed to be in frequent touch with a handler.

It has been established that the Erawan bomber spoke no Thai and apparently little English and needed to have his post-attack destination -- "Lumpini park"-- written for his taxi driver on a piece of paper.

The second bomber was running late either because he lost his way as he approached the pier from North Sathon Road (where he was also caught on CCTV stopping to make a phone call); or because he failed to make allowance for Bangkok traffic.

Both men were almost certainly relatively new arrivals in town, suggesting they travelled from abroad to carry out the bombings. My own hypothesis is they represented the sharp end of what appears to have been a hybrid or "joint venture" operation. Such an operation would have been driven by the anger of foreign-based "ideological" extremists directed against both China and Thailand over the plight of the Uighurs in western China and Bangkok's July deportation of refugees back to China, which may perhaps have included one or more important figures in the Uighur underground.

But attacks would also have hinged critically on in-country support from a locally-based organised crime group with a financial interest in facilitating the movement of Uighur refugees. Basic operational security would demand that both groups be of the same ethnicity -- evidently Turkic -- and share the same broad hatreds, even if for different reasons.

A critical part of that local support infrastructure was taken down by police last Saturday when a man of Turkic ethnicity -- maybe a Turkish citizen, maybe not -- was detained with a large cache of bomb-making equipment and over 200 fake or doctored Turkish passports.

The passports were undoubtedly intended to be used by Uighur refugees moving through Thailand into Malaysia, the preferred jump-off point for onward travel to Turkey. In short, the rented rooms on the eastern edge of the city represented both a bomb-making factory and a people-smuggling safe-house.

The fact that nearly two weeks after the Erawan blast and aborted riverside attack the explosives were still being stored and a suspect was still in residence is clearly ominous, suggesting further attacks were in the pipeline. While the police raid has successfully pre-empted any immediate danger, follow-on investigations and arrests will be critical in working out the full reach of a complex trans-national network which stretches from China, through Southeast Asia to Turkey.

Longer term, the Erawan tragedy throws up two key lessons for Thai policy-makers. The first relates to the danger of hybrid attacks in which ideologically-driven terrorist groups, possibly with little or no visibility, can ally with and piggy-back off criminal networks with the experience and connections to arrange cross-border travel, the renting of apartments and local sourcing of weapons and explosives.

It follows that traditional cosy accommodations between corrupt officials -- including even senior officers in the security services -- and "common criminals" now represent a potentially critical threat to national security and need to be dealt with accordingly.

Secondly, the illusion that the attack on Aug 17 was somehow not "real" terrorism is both short-sighted and, insofar as it fosters further complacency, extremely dangerous.

In the coming years Thailand, like many other countries in an interconnected world, will face terrorist threats which its security and intelligence services need to understand and pre-empt. That response should involve more effective policing at home, targeted, pro-active intelligence-gathering overseas, and stepped-up liaison with foreign services particularly in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The firmest foundation for a vibrant and successful tourist industry is action, not denial.

Anthony Davis is a security consultant and analyst with IHS-Jane's.

 

[BuiKia]

Muslims committing mass murder again? If the other way round, Muslims worldwide will be cursing and demanding an explanation.

Now all just keep quiet and continue reading with their "guide book". The same one used by the murderer.

 

[johnny333]

With the indiscriminate open door policy where proper checks are not done of their background. The PAP is importing people with all kinds of issues from health issues to ethnic,racial & political problems.


Just imagine a bomb going off at Orchard Road or in a crowded MRT trains or station at rush hour

 

[yinyang]

Breaking news. Bomber finally arrested in Cambodia? Uighur connection

Erawan bombing suspect arrested in Cambodia
Published: 1/09/2015 at 04:20 PM http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/security/676696/erawan-bombing-suspect-arrested-in-cambodia

A foreigner suspected of involvement in last month’s bombing of the Erawan shrine in Bangkok was arrested in Cambodia and handed over to Thai authorities Tuesday, a police source said.

The as-yet-unidentified suspected arrested in the Bangkok bombing investigation. (Bangkok Post photo)




A informed source in the police investigative team said Cambodian police captured the suspect on Monday and arranged today's handover at the border in the Cambodian border town of Poipet in Banteay Meanchey province, opposite Sa Kaeo's Aranyaprathet district.

He was detained for preliminary investigations at a military camp in Aranyaprathet before Bangkok for further interrogations, the source added.

The source refused to state where the man was arrested in Cambodia and said he was identified only as "Yusufu".

Thai media today widely published a photo of a Chinese passport of a man matching the suspect's description. In the passport, he is identified as Yusufu Mieraili, 25, from Xinjiang province.

Xinjiang is the home province for China's Uighur Muslim minority.

The suspect was believed to be on his way from Thailand to Phnom Penh when he was captured, according to the source.

The source said a senior police officer went to Cambodia to coordinate with authorities there after it had been confirmed the suspect fled Thailand to Cambodia.

Second Bangkok bombing suspect held
Assistant national police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda is leading the investigation on the case.

Earlier, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said the man was a "main suspect" in the Aug. 17 bombing at the Ratchaprasong intersection shrine that killed 20 and injured 131.

He is believed to the person seen in CCTV footage wearing a yellow shirt and leaving a backpack behind at the shrine.

Authorities plan to hold a press conference after 5pm to release more details about the arrest of the subject, who was being flown by helicopter back to Bangkok today.