Violence escalates in Bangkok with grenade attacks

BANGKOK - Soldiers and civilians hauled away bloodied victims after a series of grenade attacks yesterday in a new burst of violence in Thailand's chaotic capital, the scene of a tense, weekslong standoff between anti-government protesters and security forces.

The deputy prime minister said three were dead and 75 wounded. A woman was one of the dead, the government's Erawan emergency center said.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said attackers shot five M-79 grenades from a nearby area where the anti-government Red Shirt protesters are encamped. But his brief statement televised live late last night seemed to stop short of directly blaming the Red Shirts, and he urged people who had been demonstrating against them to leave the area for their own safety.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva did not make a public appearance. The Red Shirts want him to dissolve parliament and call elections. They consist mainly of poor rural supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and pro-democracy activists who opposed the military coup that ousted him in 2006 after months of demonstrations by the Yellow Shirts.

The Red Shirts believe Abhisit's government is illegitimate because it came to power under military pressure through a parliamentary vote after disputed court rulings ousted two elected pro-Thaksin governments.

The first three blasts happened about 8 p.m. at the elevated mass transit skytrain station on Silom Road, close to the Patpong entertainment district, famous for its go-go bars. Grenades punched two holes in the platform roof, and passengers were rushed away down the station's stairs by soldiers who were stationed there. At least two people were hurt, though apparently not seriously.

About 30 minutes later two more blasts occurred at an intersection filled with demonstrators protesting against the Red Shirts as well as bystanders. One exploded in front of a sandwich shop near a hotel driveway and the other a dozen yards down Silom Road in front of a bank.

Chaos ensued, as the scores of wounded were carried to ambulances, as police and soldiers began to clear the area.

In a previous paroxysm of violence, 25 people were killed and more than 800 wounded on April 10 when the army sought to clear out the Red Shirts from another part of the capital.