The terrorists have not yet reached the main tourist areas

A series of explosions occurred in southern Thailand, killing 14 people and injuring more than 500. The authorities are convinced that the terrorist attacks were carried out by Islamic separatists fighting for the separation of the southern regions populated by Muslims. Tourists from Russia were not harmed - as a rule, foreigners are not taken to the problematic southern regions, and the terrorists have not yet reached the popular resorts. With details - Kommersant correspondent in Southeast Asia ALEXEY IONOV.

The explosions sounded almost simultaneously in the centers of the cities of Yala and Hat Yai in the Muslim south of Thailand. Explosives weighing 60-70 kg were hidden in two gas cylinders, which were lying in the back of an Isuzu pickup truck parked on the street. At first, a version appeared that the cylinders had spontaneously exploded, but the police who arrived at the scene found electrical wires and parts of electronic devices. And literally 10 minutes after police specialists began working at the scene of the terrorist attack, a Toyota pickup parked 20 meters from the site of the first terrorist attack exploded.

According to Thai Health Minister Witthaya Buranasiri, eight people died on the spot, and three more died later in hospital. 127 people were injured, ten of them are in serious condition.

About an hour after the Yala bombings, another terrorist attack occurred, this time in the city of Hat Yai in the southern province of Songkhla. There, a car parked in the underground parking lot of the Lee Garden Plaza Hotel exploded. In the same building there is a large shopping and entertainment center, which was full of people on the weekend. Police initially reported five deaths, but yesterday the figure was adjusted to three. There were more than 400 wounded. The fire caused by the explosion took four hours to extinguish.

Among those killed in the city of Hat Yai was at least one foreign tourist - from Malaysia. The Russian Embassy in Bangkok reported that there were no Russians among the victims. And this is not surprising: Russian tourists rarely visit the southern, Muslim, provinces of Thailand; organized tours to that region are not offered.

Photo: REUTERS/Surapan Boonthanom, Reuters

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra expressed condolences to the families of the dead and injured. On her orders, the country's police chief, General Pryupan Damapong, flew to the region. Yesterday he said: all the explosions are the work of Islamic separatists.

In the south of Thailand, on the border with Malaysia, there is its own powder keg - three provinces: Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala, 90% of whose inhabitants are Muslims (in general, in Thailand, 95% of the population professes Buddhism). For many years now, separatist groups have been active in this region, demanding separation from Thailand. Over the past eight years, according to official data alone, more than 5 thousand people have died at the hands of Islamists, and the favorite victims of terrorists are police officers, military personnel and school teachers.

The current series of explosions is the largest since August 2008, when terrorists blew up a discotheque in Hat Yai. This city is popular with tourists not only from neighboring Malaysia, but also from China and a number of Muslim countries.

This time, the terrorist attacks occurred on the eve of the celebration of Songkran - the Thai New Year, which will be celebrated from April 11 to 19. Hat Yai is the center of New Year's celebrations in the south of Thailand. And this year, during the Songkran period, all hotel rooms in the city were booked. However, after the explosions, 60% of orders were canceled. The losses of the Hat Yai tourism industry from the terrorist attack are estimated at 1 billion baht (about $35 million). The restoration of the shopping center and the Lee Garden Plaza Hotel will cost the same amount.

Thailand is torn from the Islamic side