Thailand sets up 'war room' to hunt Bangkok bombers

Defence minister says Monday's bombing targeted tourism, as government said to set up "war room" to coordinate response.

 

Thailand's government has set up a "war room" to hunt down those responsible for Monday's deadly bombing of a Bangkok shrine, as the country's defence minister said the attack aimed to target the country's economy.
The explosion, which has killed at least 20 people and injured dozens, detonated around 7pm local time at the crowded Erawan Hindu Shrine in the city's busy commercial district.
Estimates of the number of people injured ranged from 78 to beyond 100, as rescue efforts continued on Tuesday.

Bodies, twisted metal and debris were scattered across the street  [Amanda Mustard / Al Jazeera]

Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan told the Reuters news agency that those responsible "intended to destroy the economy and tourism, because the incident occurred in the heart of the tourism district".
"It was a TNT bomb... the people who did it targeted foreigners and to damage tourism and the economy," he said.
The government would set up a "war room" to coordinate the response to the blast, the Nation television channel quoted Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha as saying.

Chan-ocha had called an emergency meeting with high-level government officials and military officers in charge of national security in the wake of the attack.
No one has claimed responsibility for the blast.
Those killed included at least two Chinese nationals, the Chinese embassy said
Al Jazeera's Wayne Hay, reporting from near the scene on Tuesday, said officials said the bombing "did not match the tactics" of Muslim rebels in the country's south.
The rebels, who Thai forces have been fighting for years, have rarely launched attacks outside their ethnic Malay heartland.
"Thailand's under military rule, we've just had a reshuffle in the police ranks, we're about to have a reshuffle in the military ranks. There have been two coups in eight years removing democratically elected governments," our correspondent said.
"There's going to be a lot of rumours over coming days and weeks and we may never know."
Our correspondent said Bangkok appeared to be "very much in shock" the morning after the attack.
While the site has been cordoned off and security in the capital has been lifted, a state of emergency has not been imposed.
Al Jazeera's Veronica Pedrosa, who was at the scene shortly after the blast, said the explosion sent people "running for their lives".
"Bodies, twisted metal and debris were scattered across the street at a place popular with locals and tourists," she said.