Bangkok Bombings The Work Of Jemaah Islamiah

[george]

BREAKING NEWS:

Bangkok bombings the work of JI

BANGKOK: -- 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.

-- The Australian, AU 2007-01-20

-- Bangkok Post Breaking News 2007-01-20

[terryp]

I don’t know which is worse Tax-ins cronies or JI…….very bad to know JI have made a move in Thailand

[thaigene2]

Interesting...but I think if it was JI they would have planned a 'spectacular' not a series of small explosions. So doubtful..to me at least.

Is this more dis-information?

I also don't understand the second-to-last paragraph about Thaksin-supporters instigating this from Langkawi. Seems to contradict the whol story doesn't it?

[farangsay]

So inteligence agencies say it was southerners/islamists

while intelligence sources say it was Thaksin cronies.

Anybody else got any theories ?

[kmart]

So inteligence agencies say it was southerners/islamists

while intelligence sources say it was Thaksin cronies.

Anybody else got any theories ?

Could be the work of the tooth fairy.

What a crock of absolute and utter b*llocks.

The words "Thai"; "intelligence" and "report" do not belong in the same sentence.

Unlike say, "pissup" and "brewery?"

[Pink Mist]

JI makes sense, they want to destabilise the SE Asian area and make a muslim dominated region.

[brahmburgers]

Thai leaders have a bad habit of making off-the-cuff calls - whenever something dire happens. Thaksin did it immediatly after a plane he was about to board had a small bomb explode - and (surprise!) his call was totally off-base. Actually, Thaksin was wrong so often that, whenever we heard his split second assessment of any dire event, we just assumed it was wrong.

Now the new gov't appears to be doing the same silly on-the-spot assessments - instead, what they should do is mention the FACTS of the matter and go on to say something like, 'our experts are investigating as we speak, and we are determined to get to the bottom of this and find out exactly what happened and/or who the perpetrators are."

The Thai habit of instant knowledge stems mainly from the ingrained Thai attitude that "elders always know best." ....so if an elder, or person in authority says, 'such and such happened." then the populace is supposed to (and most often does) go blindly along. Just as harmful, the elders' assessment is supposed to predetermine the results that detectives come up with. In other words, the instant assessment by power-brokers is the result they want to see from the so-called 'investigation.'

[Nikkijah]

Wouldn't JI have claimed responsibility?

[brahmburgers]

interesting, but not surprising that it's an Aussie news service that is (or appears to be) breaking the story. Similarly, whenever an internationally wanted criminal is apprehended in Thailand, it always seems to be overseas sleuthing that's the main force behind the apprehension. Let's hope Thai 'intelligence services' and police forces (equivelent of the FBI?) get better at their jobs - and take the wheel, rather than so often taking the back seat and relying on foreign intelligence services to connect the dots.

A case in point is the man who murdered several yound people in India and in Thailand (can't recall his name, something like Sorej?) - Even when BKK police were given intruiging evidence by a Belgian embassy worker, and actually arrested the guy in Bangkok, the Thai authorities LET HIM GO, because it was a weekend and they couldn't verify whether his American passport was valid. It turned out his passport was bogus - and the scumbag went off and murdered several other people before he was apprehended much later - in India.

...so it goes.

[Pink Mist]

Wouldn't JI have claimed responsibility?

No, if it was in indonesia, yes, in another country, no, they are so fickle anyway.

JI makes sense, working thru malasia, simple bombs.

[hammered]

JI, Southern Separatists, Thaksin, Communists and waiters. It is quite difficult to work out who is being linked to who in this not so well written report.

I also wonder if the leaking of this info could be linked to this report, which may or may not be contradictory : Officers to face house searches

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/20Jan2007_news10.php

Will the truth ever come out?

[blaze]

Maybe I'm wrong, but if the pieces start to fall together implicating an international terrorist organization- there's going to be a lot of international attention. If the Australian report has any meat on it you can bet that western intelligence agencies are going to get involved. And when they do, stupid statements such as, "it couldn't be southerners 'cause they'd get lost in Bangkok" are not going to improve the government's credibility internationally- even though they make perfect sense in Thailand- nor will unfounded allegations that JI was co-operating with Taksin. The government would be well advised not to try to 'fool' the foreigner on this one. Not if it doesn't want to look totally incompetent and ridiculous to the world.

But of course, this whole story could be disinformation planted to take the heat off of the real culprits. Even so, international investigators will be watching very carefully.

Edited January 20, 2007 by blaze

[LPCustom69]

In other words, they still don't know.

[LPCustom69]

It makes you wonder why they didn't wait until after the searches were made before announcing that they were going to do searches on certain individuals, casting suspicion their way.

[farang prince]

So inteligence agencies say it was southerners/islamists

while intelligence sources say it was Thaksin cronies.

Anybody else got any theories ?

How about...these guys don't have a clue!!!!

[capt_canada42]

I wonder if it was JI because these terrorists have a lot of experience in killing a large numbers of people, it seems to me that who ever did the bombings were not trying to kill a lot of people but scare people.

It may have been lack of experience that contributed to the low death numbers. It could also have been JI but the people who set the bombs were afraid of being noticed and thus placed the bombs in places so that they were not noticed, thus the low death count as these areas were low traffic areas.

[ThaiPauly]

Taksin & JI working in coroberation...that covers every angle then

If JI do not claim responsibility I cannot see where the government can go with this until someone says "I did it"

If however JI WERE responsible and Toxin is NOT trying to de-stabalize the country I feel they owe him some kind of apology IMHO

[cdnvic]

In other words, they still don't know.

Exactly!

[faranginbkk]

From The Nation's weblog:

Defence Minister Boonrawd Somtas said it himself that based on evidence and plausible assumption, he suspected men in uniform were involved in the New Year bomb attacks.

On January 8, General Prem Tinsulanonda, president of the Privy Council, met with 84 senior cavalry officers and key battalion commanders and urged them to act as an anchor for public morale and safeguard the country in light of the unstable situation triggered by political turbulence.

Army chief General Sonthi Boonyaratglin outflanked then premier Thaksin Shinawatra by uprooting all of battalion commanders seen as Thaksin's cronies. Sonthi's move undermined the clout of Thaksin's allies from Pre-Cadet Class 10 and paved way for his grip on power. Maj General S, a Thaksin's Pre-Cadet Class 10 fellow graduate and staunch ally, had personal and professional interest to steer officers from Pre-Cadet Class 22-to-24 to rise through the military ranks. The general and his proteges are now assigned to desk job.

In the July's reshuffle, Sonthi chose to fill key battalion positions with graduates from Pre-Cadet Class 25-to-26. And he removed the majority of Pre-Cadet Class 10 officers to inactive positions after the coup. Even though there is no one pointing an accusing finger against former battalion commanders, it is not a mere coincidence that Prem should have an unscheduled meeting with incumbent commanders.

I suspect the masterminds behind the bombing will never be unmasked because it is a long-established tradition that graduates from the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy will not annihilate one another.

Suspected masterminds in all past bombings linked to the military continue to elude the law to this day.

[wilko]

I was just about to post "haven't got a clue" then I noticed the post above......I guess one certainty is that somewhere down the line the wrong person will be areested and charged

[brazil]

well done to australia for having the balls to print this story

nows the time for the gov. to come out and tell the truth, the truth it has known for many days, but still continues to brainwash and hide these facts from its citizens

its disgusting!!!

[Naam]

JI makes sense, they want to destabilise the SE Asian area and make a muslim dominated region.

sure! TV-forum should invoke all necessary restrictions to prevent agents of Jemaah Islamiyah and al-Qaeda to post islamic propaganda.

i suggest that all posters are forced to submit their CVs and a sworn affidavit in this respect.

[lukamar]

According to today's post it's senior Military, LOL. Is there anyone that they haven't accused in this one yet.

__________________________________

Officers to face house searches

WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM BKK Post

Police will today search the houses of suspects thought to be linked to the New Year's Eve bombings, including homes of several senior military officers in Bangkok and Lop Buri. A highly-placed source said the searches would focus on houses belonging to military officers ranging from colonels to generals suspected of involvement in a series of bomb blasts in Bangkok and neighbouring Nonthaburi province on Dec 31.

The unprecedented attacks killed three people and injured more than 40 others including several foreigners.

However, assistant national police chief Pol Lt-Gen Panupong Singhara na Ayutthaya yesterday refused to say where the searches will take place.

He said investigators were collecting solid evidence before the search

could be conducted today.

Probably so they can plant it on someone...LOL

Council for National Security (CNS) chief Sonthi Boonyaratkalin said the government and the CNS were expecting a report on the progress of the investigation into the blasts from the police in the next few days.

The CNS would set up a parallel inquiry into the New Year's Eve explosions, said Gen Sonthi.

So far, the authorities have been unable to identify the suspected perpetrators of the blasts due to a lack of clear evidence, they say.

[Tolley]

JI or Musllim insurgents has always been the most likely culprit for the Bangkok bombings.

It is hardly a revelation.

It is hard to see Thaksin or those linked to Thaksin engaging in such behaviour. Too much to lose and very little to gain. If the present administration had ever had a shred of evidence against Thaksin or any of his cronies it would have presented it long ago.

[farang prince]

well done to australia for having the balls to print this story

nows the time for the gov. to come out and tell the truth, the truth it has known for many days, but still continues to brainwash and hide these facts from its citizens

its disgusting!!!

The Australian government should be careful...the Government of Thailand will suspend high level activities with them also for allowing this story to appear in an Aussie newspaper. Everytime the Thai leadership does something that defies logic, something else surfaces that defies even greater logic.

[Mid]

I suspect the masterminds behind the bombing will never be unmasked because it is a long-established tradition that graduates from the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy will not annihilate one another.

[ColPyat]

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.

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.

Those two statements are a bit strange.

Rusdi must have received training at the age of 15 in Lybia, and at now 38 years old a former communist guerilla? Isn't that a tad bit young for all that?

And reasoning that Thaksin supporters and JI have hatched that plan together is a bit far fetched without any proof or evidence.

Sorry, but that sounds as if somebody had a boring week and needed to get a story out.

I still believe we are in the realm of pure speculation here.

[cdnvic]

What doesn't make sense is that JI doesn't set off these little grenade bombs, the set off large bombs that kill alot of people. These little firecrackers don't fit their methods.

[grapetable]

Australia has a relatively free press unlike Thailand et al.............the Fed Govt has little clout in that area. Something Asian Gov'ts have trouble understanding.

Im sure John Howard is quaking with worry.........................

[tectronic]

Intelligence spamming. In the end nobody will know what really happend.

Thats the target for all of them. At the moment it looks like every

party is involved in it. But then again, who was it now?