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Bangkok bombings the work of JI
THAI intelligence agencies say operatives of the regional terror network Jemaah Islamiah were directly involved in the New Year's Eve bombings in the Thai capital that left three dead and 40 wounded. In reports seen by The Weekend Australian, the agencies say a key JI leader in Thailand's southern Narathiwat province was directly involved in the planning of the operation. The link contradicts earlier comments by military-installed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont who said the bombings appeared to be unrelated to the violence in the south, which has claimed more than 1800 lives since early 2004. "From the evidence we have gathered, there is a slim chance that it is related to the southern insurgency," Mr Surayud said in the early hours of New Year's Day soon after the bloodshed. "It is likely related to people who lost political benefits," he said, referring to the former Thaksin Shinawatra administration that was ousted in a coup in September amid allegations of corruption and abuse of power and fears of street clashes. In an interview with CNN this week, Mr Thaksin, who is now living in exile, denied any involvement with the attacks. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombings. The eight bombs, set in crowded tourist areas that left at least seven foreigners among the wounded, cast a pall over the city that had largely escaped violence in a year of political turmoil. However, Thai intelligence reports draw a direct link with the southern insurgency, including JI. The reports say a meeting in December between the head of JI in Narathiwat province and a representative from the Patani United Liberation Organisation made the final preparations. Bomb materials were to be supplied from Cambodia. "Masae Useng, the head of the Jemaah Islamiah in Narathiwat province and Ruslan Yumuraenae, the commander of the PULO Sabotage Unit had met in the (informant's) home in Kuala Lumpur towards the end of December 2006," the report says. The meeting's purpose was to select personnel for deployment to Bangkok "where they would commit acts of sabotage aimed at intensifying the dispute between the Government and the former regime", it said. "Such attacks would provide a significant boost to Separatist Front morale and would put the Siamese infidels off balance." The commander of the sabotage unit was Lohmueli Yusoh, alias Rusdi Pohseng, a 38-year-old former Communist Party guerilla who had received military and sabotage training in Libya in 1983. There is now a one million baht ($35,700) bounty for Rusdi's arrest. Ten "foot soldiers" - young insurgents - working in Thai restaurants in northern Malaysia were selected to plant the bombs. Intelligence sources said the bombings were instigated by supporters of the former Thaksin administration during a meeting in late November on the Malaysian resort island of Langkawi. But leading Thai forensic scientist Porntip Rojanasunan placed doubts on whether separatists were seeking to target sites outside the southern border area. Posted by: Steve 2007-01-19 |
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