BANGKOK: A Thai court will deliver its verdict Thursday (June 11) in the long-delayed case of a 2015 attack at a Bangkok shrine that killed 20 people, the deadliest bombing in the country's history.
Two Uyghur men, Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed, stand accused of planting a bomb at a Hindu shrine in Bangkok's commercial heart in August 2015. The defendants have denied the charges.
The decade-long trial over the horrific attack in Thailand's capital that also wounded more than 100 people was beset by delays due to coronavirus disruptions and problems securing translators.
Multiple Chinese tourists were among the dead when explosives -- apparently left in a backpack -- detonated at the Erawan Hindu shrine popular with tourists.
The blast came weeks after Thailand's then-ruling junta forcibly repatriated 109 Uyghurs to China.
The timing prompted speculation that the attack was part of a revenge plot against a country that had been a key transit hub for Uyghurs as Thailand's then-military leaders grew closer to Beijing.
Delays and drugs
Shortly after the bombing, police named 17 suspects, but only Mieraili and Mohammed were initially apprehended.
Thailand's junta authorities were criticised for a murky investigation that appeared to wind down shortly after the arrest of the two men.
They went on trial in 2016, accused of planting the explosives.
But the proceedings -- which have involved hundreds of witness testimonies -- have been delayed multiple times, once because the translator for the accused was hit with drugs charges.
In 2017 a Thai woman called Wanna Suansan was detained on arrival in Bangkok on a warrant linked to the shrine blast -- making her the third named suspect arrested by police.
She was charged with attempted murder, associated murder and possession of bombs and weapons, but was acquitted in 2024.
Uyghurs, a Turkic minority, hail from China's westernmost province, Xinjiang.
Thailand deported dozens of Uyghurs to China in February 2025.
Erawan Shrine remains a popular draw for Chinese tourists to the kingdom's capital, but none AFP spoke to ahead of the verdict said they knew about the case.
"I have not heard about it," said a young Chinese woman on Monday.
A Chinese man who said he came to the shrine "every year" declined to answer when asked about the 2015 bombing.
"It's nice to come here to pray," he said before walking away. - AFP
