A series of nine bomb explosions in Bangkok, the capital, on Dec. 31 killed three people and injured at least 34, including at least eight foreign tourists. All three of the dead were Thai. The homemade devices struck shopping malls and busy streets crowded with New Year's Eve revellers. Celebrations of the (Western) New Year were cancelled as a result of the attacks.
No group claimed responsibility for the blasts, but it was reported that the police thought it was unlikely that those mounting the Islamist insurgency in Thailand's southernmost provinces had planted the bombs, saying that the more likely culprits were supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted by a military coup in September and now living in exile [see pp. 47457-58; 47583].
Governor of the Bank of Thailand (the central bank) Tarisa Watanagase on Dec. 18 imposed restrictions on short-term speculative investments of foreign currency that were ...