Grenade Hurled Into Bangkok Protestors' Truck

Blast sparks fears of widespread bloodshed
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jan 17, 2014 3:00 AM CST
Blast Wounds Dozens of Bangkok Protesters
An anti-government demonstrater holds his weapon as dilapidated buildings are searched for possible suspects near the scene of the explosion.   (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Dozens of people were wounded in Thailand's capital today when a grenade was hurled at anti-government demonstrators marching through Bangkok, an ominous development that raises tensions in the country's political crisis and the specter of more bloodshed to come. Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban was in the procession but was not wounded when the explosive device was thrown into a truck driven by demonstrators. The city's emergency services center put the number of injured at 31. Police say the grenade was hurled from a nearby building.

Anti-government demonstrators seeking to oust Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, have taken over key roads and overpasses in Bangkok this week, blocking them off with sandbag walls and steel barricades. The protests, which are also aimed at derailing elections early next month, have been peaceful. But small acts of violence have been reported nightly, including shooting attacks at protest venues and small explosives hurled at the homes of top protest supporters. It is unclear who is behind them, but any prolonged violence raises the risk of another military coup. (More Bangkok stories.)

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