1 dead as explosion rocks Suthep march (Updated)

One protester has now died from a bomb blast near the area where protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban was marching on Banthat Thong Road. At least 37 were injured.

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Saturday updates

12:00

PDRC rally leader Suthep Thuagsuban and protesters from the Pathumwan rally site are marching again. Their route has taken them very near the site of yesterday's bombing. (See map below) They went down Rama 1 to the Charoen Phon intersection, but turned right instead of left. They are about two hours into the march and there have been no problems so far.

Another group of protesters from Ratchaprasong have entered the National Police headquarters to demand action in apprehending those behind the violence of the past few days. Rally leaders have announced they will not enter buildings within the headquarters, however.

9:30

Post Today is reporting this morning that one of the injured protesters has died. He was 46-year-old Prakong Chujantr from Nakorn Si Thammarat.

Ramathibodi Hospital where he was treated said he had shrapnel wounds to the chest, damaging his aorta. He died at 2.35 this morning.

From this morning's Bangkok Post:

Rally boss Suthep Thaugsuban says he holds the caretaker government responsible for the grenade attack yesterday on demonstrators taking part in a march and vowed to once again escalate his anti-government protest.

In a highly emotional speech after the attack, Mr Suthep said the grenade blast that left 36 wounded, one in serious condition, was the work of the government and called on the protesters to draw strength from it.

He said that he was not deterred by yesterday's attack. Instead he would intensify his city march and oust the government.

"We have to continue this fight. We have invested a lot in it. Our fellow protesters were injured and killed. This is the 27th assault on us and there have been a lot of injuries," he said.

Police, however, have raised questions about the incident in which protester guards blocked police and reporters entering the area near the attack scene where they claimed they found a weapons stockpile.

Police also queried the last-minute change in the protest route.

Meanwhile, a video has emerged of the bombing incident and it has created quite a stir. Some say it is proof that the PDRC staged the incident, others say it shows how cruel PDRC opponents are. The resolution is not clear enough to come to a final conclusion except that the blast was powerful and capable of causing death. (If you want to be a detective, download the video and play it in slow motion. At about the 10 second point, start watching the man waving the flag next to the vehicle where the bomb exploded at the 13 second mark. Notice that what first appears to be something coming out of the vehicle, is almost certainly the flag.)

Friday updates

20:50

Here's more information on this afternoon's bombing incident. As of 7pm, 15 victims remained in hospital and 21 others were treated and released. Several of the more serious injuries required operations. As a result of the incident, the Red Cross has called for urgent blood donations to be prepared in case the violence continues.

As for the weapons, at first it was reported that it was a large arsenal of war weapons, then it was found that the guns at least were not ready for use. Now it appears those guns were use to shoot BBs not bullets. There is no question that the bomb was real, however.

Finally, relations between the protesters and the police have deteriorated further. Police put the blame on the march organisers for making a last-minute change in the route without informing police. PDRC spokesman Akanat Phrompan flatly denies this. At the bomb scene, police were booed and prevented for entering the building were the bomb was suspected to have been thrown from. The protesters are obviously putting their trust in soldiers.

17:55

PDRC spokesman Akanat Promphan, who was with Mr Suthep, has just told Channel 3's Sorayuth that the explosion was only about 20-30 metres from where they were. He said the location was origianlly supposed to be where they ate lunch, but the ended up eating a bit earlier. The latest number for the injuries is 36 and Akanat says some of those are serious.

16:30

All of a sudden there was lots of excitement at the building suspected of being the site of the bomb attack -- on Chula Soi 6 off Banthat Thong Road. Soldiers were brought in an they entered a unit of the abandoned building. A short time later, the media entered and it was clear the unit had been occupied. On a table was a collection of weapons, apparently not fully assembled, and there was also communication equipment. There was also clothing in the room and the remains of a recently eaten meal.

A large room upstairs, looked more like an office with a whiteboard with writing on the wall. There were four uneaten meals in styrofoam containers and a bunch of bananas on a table. It is not at all certain, however, that this discovery is in anyway related to the bombing. The writing on the whiteboard deals with ordering work-related activities. Much more investigation is needed.

Explosion rocks Suthep march

An explosive device, possibly a grenade, has exploded near the area where protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban was marching on Banthat Thong Road, injuring at least 28 (Now 36 as of 16:30) demonstrators.

Witnesses say an explosive device was thrown from an abandoned building on to the marchers below.

Initial reports said a suspect was captured by PDRC guards, but that has not been confirmed.

Police, soldiers and city officials are now on the scene, collecting possible bomb fragments and preparing to go inside.

Officials are asking all people, including media, to leave for fear additional explosive devices might be inside.

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