MFA downplays terror threat alert issued to Japanese expats in Thailand

[webfact]

Thani Saengrat. Picture: Wasawat Lukharang/BBC THAI

 

The BBC's Thai news team reported that an email was sent to Japanese people in Thailand warning of a threat of a terrorist attack in the country.

 

The warning, that also referred to the countries of SE Asia, came from the Japanese foreign ministry in the Japanese language and was issued on Sunday at 5 pm.

 

It quickly hit Thai social media via Drama Addict's 2.8 million users and was widely shared, said the BBC.

 

It spoke of the possibility of a bomb attack in crowded places and specifically mentioned places of worship and warned Japanese nationals to be on their guard.

 

Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Thanee Saengrat confirmed that the email was issued but said that the Japanese did not mention a source of the data and the Japanese Embassy didn't know about it either. It referred to the entire region not just Thailand, he stated.

 

Meanwhile the BBC quoted Royal Thai Police spokesman Pol Col Krissana Pattanacharoen as playing down the threat saying it was a normal warning and not specific to Thailand.

 

He said that neither the RTP or metropolitan police had been advised of any specific threat and there was no cause for alarm. 

 

-- © Copyright  ASEAN NOW 2021-09-14

 

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[nausea]

I agree with the police colonel, too vague to be of any practical use, unlike, say, the Kabul airport warnings, issued by multiple agencies, prior to the 26/8 terror attack. 

[Whale]

Question remains in my mind, how trustworthy are Thai politicians, police and ministries? This is the land of million flip-flops, what will story be tomorrow?

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

The warning, that also referred to the countries of SE Asia, came from the Japanese foreign ministry in the Japanese language and was issued on Sunday at 5 pm

Yet nothing to worry about?