PM tells Thailand to brace for more bombs

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Army-installed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont told Thailand on Thursday to prepare for repeats of the bomb attacks which killed three people and wounded 38 in Bangkok on New Year's Eve.

"I would like to ask our brothers and sisters to brace themselves for a life-threatening thing like this for a while," Surayud told the National Legislative Council, which is acting as a parliament in the wake of a September 19 military coup.

He gave no details.

His comments are likely to keep the 9 million inhabitants of the sprawling capital on edge after a string of bomb hoaxes and scares since the New Year. Thai media reported false alarms at a government office and major shopping mall on Thursday.

The identity of those behind the bombings, which knocked 4 percent off the stock market as investors feared political violence in 2007, remains a mystery, although post-coup ministers are pointing the finger at dissident soldiers and police.

However, the government has provided no evidence to back up its claims, which most Thais interpret as implicating ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, now in exile in Beijing, and his allies still in the country.

Defense Minister General Boonrod Somtat continued to rule out foreign terrorist groups and Muslim militants fighting Bangkok's rule in the far south, despite some similarities in style.

"So, there are only those inside the country left -- the civilians, police and armed forces both in khaki and green," he told reporters.

"Intelligence puts 90 percent weight on political issues. There is a political group in which a few people have the potential to do such a thing," he said, without elaborating.

"People who can handle this involve civilians, police and military officers."

Thaksin, a former police lieutenant-colonel, has denied any involvement in the bombings, which prompted the United States, Britain and Australia to issue travel advisories to its citizens.

WHAT EVIDENCE?