UPDATE 7 - Thai police: Series of fatal bombings not terror-linked

UPDATES TO RELEAD, ADD EMBASSY WARNINGS

By Max Constant and CS Thana

BANGKOK (AA) – Thai police are reported to be questioning two men after a series of bomb blasts killed at least four people and injured around 35 in the country's south.

With two of the explosions occurring in the tourist resort areas of Hua Hin and Phuket, police have been quick to announce that the bombings were not related to terrorism.

"Thailand has no religious or territorial quarrel with anyone. Therefore this was an act of sabotage, internal sabotage," police spokesman Piyapan Phingmuang told reporters.

In the past, Thai governments have avoided use of the term "terrorism" for fear of the effect it may have on the country's famous tourist industry.

Instead, words such as "sabotage" and "criminal behavior" are utilized.

Later Friday, United States, British, Australian and Japanese embassies informed their citizens to tread carefully.

“There have been multiple explosions in tourist areas across Thailand on 11 and 12 August. We are in close contact with local authorities and urgently seeking more information. You should exercise extreme caution, avoid public places, and follow the advice of local authorities,” the British embassy website said.

It advised against all but essential travel to the provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Songkhla on the Thai-Malaysia border -- four provinces wracked by a Muslim insurgency.

The overnight attacks rocked four cities in the south as the country prepared to celebrate the birthday of its queen -- also Mothers' Day in Thailand.

The southern insurgency has wracked border areas with Malaysia for decades, but insurgents have rarely troubled areas as north as some of those struck.

The attacks also occur less than a week after a junta-backed constitution was approved by a referendum, increasing military influence in the political process following a 2014 coup.

National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda also blamed the explosions on “local elements”, telling reporters that the attacks were “likely the result of those disaffected with politics".

"Are these people Thai? They attack young and old, innocent people who have nothing to do with politics. It is beyond the pale. They are despicable."

He has set up a task force to investigate the violence.

Initial blasts struck the southern province of Trang close to Malaysia late Thursday, with subsequent explosions shaking the resort city of Hua Hin (at 200 kilometers away, the closest of the targets to Bangkok), the large city of Surat Thani (again in the deep south), the tourist island of Phuket and then Hua Hin again.

Talking to reporters, junta chief-cum-Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha said he did not want to speculate on who was responsible.

"We have to focus on restoring calm, peace and restoring confidence," he said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan underlined that the perpetrators wanted to do little than create disunity, and damage the name of the country.

"We don't know if it is politically motivated but we will catch them," he added.

All of the attacks shared the same profile, said Army Gen. Danai Kritmethavee at a morning event to commemorate the life of the queen.

The last two blasts occurred in Hua Hin around 9 a.m. (0200GMT) Friday near its clock tower. They exploded simultaneously, and, according to pictures broadcast a few minutes after the explosions by local TV channel Nation TV, four people were injured -- with one victim later succumbing to injuries in hospital.

One hour earlier, two bomb explosions took place in Surat Thani (650 kilometers away from the capital), killing one person and injuring at least four, just after a ceremony in the city center to pay homage to the queen.

The first bomb exploded in front of a police station and the second 30 minutes later in the same area, said Nation TV.

Another blast occurred Friday morning near Patong beach on Phuket (847 kilometers south of Bangkok) in which one person was injured.

Late Thursday evening, two bombs exploded within 20 minutes of each other in the tourist resort of Hua Hin, killing at least one person -- a local street food seller -- and injuring 22, including 10 foreigners.

Kritmethavee told Nation TV that two suspects were being interrogated.

"The two bombs were detonated remotely by mobile phone," he told the channel.

Edwin Wiek, a Hua Hin resident who was at the scene of the Thursday night attack, told Anadolu Agency by phone that at least four foreign nationals were among those injured.

"I have lived here for over 20 years and have never seen anything like this," Wiek said.

The attack was preceded by the attack on Trang, 840 kilometers south of Bangkok, in which five people were injured and one later died.