NOTE: This is rather rushed. Will fix up some editing problems later and do a new post if there is any further information to add. (UPDATE: Done as much as I have time to do for now)

AP reports:

A bomb exploded in the parking lot of an upscale hotel in Thailand's restive south on Saturday, killing two people and wounding 14 others, police said.

The blast shattered windows as high as the eighth floor of the C.S. Pattani Hotel, the largest hotel in Thailand's southern provinces, where a Muslim insurgency has been under way since 2004.

The bomb was hidden in a fire extinguisher inside a parked car near the hotel's entrance, said Col. Tawatchai Samutsakorn. Police found and defused a second bomb in a hotel restroom, he said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility, and authorities did not speculate on who was behind the attack.

A hotel security guard died in the explosion and the other victim died later at a hospital, Tawatchai said.

A senator from Pattani province, Anusas Suwanmongkhol, owns the hotel and suffered a slight head wound in the explosion, Tawatchai said. A Thai television journalist and two children were also lightly wounded, he said.

An outdoor cafe attached to the hotel was badly damaged.

The hotel has tight security and a reputation as the safest place to stay in Thailand's three southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat.

BP: A journalist from The Nation was also injured. According to The Manager, the other victim who died was a cook at the hotel and had burns to 90% of his body. The Nation also states that "[s]ix of the fifteen were admitted to the hospital, some in extremely critical condition". I have read another news report that 3 of the 6 were seriously injured. The Bangkok Post notes that "two members of the provincial council" were also injured - read below to see possible significance of this.

Number of Bombs/Size of Bomb(s)

On how many bombs, The Nation reports differently from Reuters that the bomb in the restroom actually went off:

A smaller bomb had exploded at 8pm in a groundfloor restroom, causing little damage. Then 20 minutes later another was detonated outside the hotel coffee shop.

The Bangkok Post notes:

Another bomb went off near a toilet in the hotel's canteen minutes before the car bomb, witnesses said. But no one was injured.

BP: So at the hotel, there seem to be at least 3 possibly 4 bombs. A bomb went off inside the hotel before the larger one went off outside the hotel. This is similar - albeit on a much lower scale - to the Bali bombings where the bomb inside the nightclub caused many people to flee outside where a larger bomb was detonated. Kom Chad Luek notes that security experts are worried this was the terrorist's plan and that they were fortunate that there were so few causalities. Fortunately, the bomb in the toilet doesn't seem to have disturbed enough people to send them rushing out.

Reuters reports it was a "20-kg (44 lb) remote-controlled bomb, hidden in a car near the entrance of a hotel in the city of Pattani". The Nation has more details on the bomb:

[Major] General Thawatchai [Samutsakorn, commander of the Pattani Task Force ] said three fire extinguisher canisters, each stuffed with 10 kg of explosive materials, were used in the attack on the CS Pattani. But only two of the three canisters had exploded, he said.

BP: Photos of the scene from AP can be seen here, but Kom Chad Luek has a number of good photos here and here. Before the attack, the hotel looked like this.

It will be awfully difficult for any security official to detect a bomb in a fire extinguisher. A guard who checks underneath the vehicle for explosives is common and they might look inside the vehicle, but hiding a bomb in a fire extinguisher is a new level of sophistication. There is no sacrifice of members by suicide bombs either. Much more resources will need to be devoted to looking for car bombs and given the limited numbers of security personnel already in the area, resources will be further stretched.

Location of Attack

Dr Panitan of Chulalongkorn University is quoted in Kom Chad Luek as saying he was personally surprised at the attack on the hotel as it had not been a target before and itwas seen as meeting place for all parties to talk/negotiate - Abuza notes this is where the reconciliation meetings have taken place - a The Nation article noted something similar. He also said that the attack is a sign by the insurgents who want to show of their potential. The Nation quotes one security source as saying "the insurgents chose the spot because leading figures often came to drink coffee and chat at the lobby."

BP: By attacking what was considered one of the few "safe places" and the major hotel in the 3 southern border provinces. This gives the impression that nowhere is safe. I don't think you can underestimate the symbolism of the attack. I think it is also clear the insurgents are not interested in negotiation either.

The Owner and Political Motives for Attack

Anusas is an appointed Senator, but according to Kom Chad Luek he won the Senate election in 2006 in Pattani. The same Kom Chad Luek article also quotes a source as saying he didn't want to compete in the election this time around as he didn't want to create conflicts with a political grouping in the province who had sent a representative to compete - the article states he has family connections with the Democrats and was offered a high list position on the southern regional party list [this would have guaranteed him a seat]. His canvassers had warned him that he might have business problems if he ran for the elected Senate. The article notes that the hotel is the Senator's main business. He had arrived at the hotel with some associates only 10-15 minutes before the bomb went off

BP: Unsure who this political grouping is, but Puea Paendin won 2 seats in Pattani, it could also be PPP Chat Thai - the Democrats seem to be excluded from how the source is quoted. Dr Panitan of Chulalongkorn University is quoted in Kom Chad Luek as mentioning the possibility of a political connection to the attack. He said there are upcoming local elections and while Senators are not allowed to be involved in assisting/campaigning, the reality is that they do get involved.

Comically, the head of Police in Pattani Province asks people not to consider the possibility that there was a national or local political motive to the attack as Anusas is a "nice person and his good-natured" ("สำหรับประเด็นที่หลายฝ่ายมองว่าอาจจะเกิดจากการเมืองระดับชาติหรือระดับท้องถิ่นนั้นตอนนี้ไม่อยากให้มองไปไกลถึงขั้นนั้น เนื่องจาก นายอนุศาสตร์ สุวรรณมงคล กรรมการผู้จัดการ โรงแรมซี.เอส.ปัตตานี และเป็น สว. ปัตตานี เป็นคนน่ารัก อัธยาศัยดี ถือเป็นนักประสานสิบทิศทีเดียว"ผบก.ภ.จว.ปัตตานีกล่าว)

BP: One can't rule out political motives, but the symbolism of the attack, other attacks/attempted attacks that day (see below) and that hitting economic targets is nothing new, persuades me to think it was more directly linked to the terrorists/insurgents. That it hurt a major powerbroker - and there is nothing to suggest he was friendly with insurgents' interests - might be in the insurgent's interests anyway.

Links to Other Attacks

The Nation reports on a link between the attack and an earlier death by an alleged insurgent who died when a bomb(s) in his car went off:

A security official said the car bomb might be linked to a failed car bomb attempt in Yala in which the alleged insurgent was killed in the afternoon because the two cars were from the same make and colour.

BP: The vehicle in the earlier attack was a dark blue Mitsubishi with Pattani plates. The Bangkok Post also reports:

Salahuding Pula, the dead man, was believed to be preparing bombs to carry out attacks at the Youth Centre in Yala town. He was the brother of Abduloh Pula, leader of an extremist gang in Than To district of Yala

Reuters also reports on a later attack:

Hours after the hotel bombing, suspected militants used a mobile phone to detonate a 5 kg bomb at a Pattani school, killing one firefighter and wounding five others. The firefighters were trying to put out a fire at the school when the bomb went off.

The Nation's Don Pathan reports there was a firefight and no bomb at the school although the Bangkok Post reports the army spokesman as saying there as a bomb.

BP: Coordinated attacks like this undermine the political motives argument - well political motives as in another political party and unrelated to the violence in the Deep South..

Ramifications of Attack

The Nation reports:

Sirichai Piti-charoen, chairman of the Pattani chamber, said the car bomb, which killed two people and injured more than 10, has been devastating for the province's image to protect tourists and other visitors.

"CS Pattani is a leading hotel here so the impact is significant.

"It's often a venue for the government and private sectors to hold meetings and seminars," Sirichai said.

"With this attack, confidence has further eroded for both tourists and potential investors.

"The government will have to find solutions to the years-long unrest in southern Thailand."

Sirichai said the chamber had telephoned or messaged members, urging them to take extra security precautions to avert further attacks.

The business operators were asked to check their closed-circuit camera systems and other security to make sure they were working properly to enable police to gather evidence should there be further attacks.

Anusart Suwanmongkol, managing director of CS Pattani, said the eight-story hotel's front glass panels were damaged by the blast, as were some furniture, ceilings and part of the front lobby.

"Unfortunately, we've not renewed our insurance coverage because the insurance firm asked for a 300 per cent increase in the premium," Anusart said.

"I would like to ask the government to investigate the matter since businesses here are being taken advantage of by insurers who are demanding higher premiums.

"Local authorities will also have to provide assistance to the families of those killed and injured," he said.

BP: Insurance is about assessing risk. I have sympathy with his plight, but the government can't put price controls on insurance companies for demanding a higher premium when there is obviously a higher risk - it is hard to deny there is a higher risk in insuring anything in the Deep South.

The authorities will need to be more careful with bombs in cars in the future as well as The Nation reports more:

Security officials were debating among themselves about the significance of the two car bomb incidents on Saturday in Yala and Pattani and whether this constituted a real shift in the insurgents' strategy and tactic.
...
"It's a change in tactic on the insurgents' part but I don't see this as a significant shift or a markup of their capability," said MajorGeneral Thawatchai Samutsakorn, commander of the Pattani Task Force.

"I don't think they have the capacity to sustain this type of operation," Thawatchai said.

BP: Brave words form Thawatchai about their capacity to sustain. Bombs hidden in motorcycles have been the weapon of choice up until now. Cars, albeit pickup trucks, are much more expensive. Were they stolen? If not, where is the money coming from?

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