Iran Behind Bangkok Bombs, Says Israel

Thai and Israeli officials believe the Iranians arrested for a series of blasts in Bangkok on Tuesday were plotting to attack Israeli diplomats.

This issue was about individuals and the targets were specific, Thailand's national police chief, General Prewpan Dhamapong, said.

This was something personal.

Tuesday's explosions, which injured four Thai civilians, came just one day after Israeli envoys in India and Georgia were targeted for attempted assassinations. Israel blamed Iran and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah for the two car bombings, and it is now claiming that, based on the types of explosives found in Bangkok, the Iranians were planning to do the same in Thailand.

We can assume from the other experiences that we were the target, the Israeli Ambassador to Thailand, Itzhak Shoham, told the Associated Press.

They are similar to the ones used in Delhi and in Tblisi, Shoham said. From that we can assume that there is the same network of terror.

The explosive material was found in the house rented by four Iranian suspects. On Tuesday, part of the bomb cache was detonated by mistake, causing the four men to flee on foot. Injured in the blast, Saeid Moradi tried to flag down a taxi, but when the driver refused to pick him up, Moradi threw a grenade at the vehicle. Moradi then threw a second grenade at police officers, but the bomb bounced off a telephone booth and back at the Iranian, blowing off one of his legs.

Moradi was taken into police custody along with Mohummad Khazaei, an Iranian national who was arrested at the Bangkok airport when trying to leave the country.

Malaysia said it will extradite Masoud Sedaghat Zadeh, a third Iranian suspect who was arrested after fleeing Bangkok. Zadeh flew to Kuala Lumpur, where he was apprehended, and apparently was trying to board a plane to Iran.

A fourth suspect, Rohani Leila, is still at large. Authorities believe that Leila was responsible for renting the house in the Thai capital and has successfully returned to Iran, according to Haaretz.

Iran denied responsibility for the attacks, but didn't hide its animosity toward Israel. After condemning the bombings, Tehran spoke out against Israel and, like it has in the past, alleged that Israel was plotting to make Iran look bad on the world stage.

The Zionist regime is trying to tarnish the historic ties between Iran and Thailand by such acts, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told state television.