Two dead after bombs explode in Thai capital

BANGKOK - A series of bomb blasts rocked the Thai capital late Sunday, killing at least two people and capping a year of unrest in the country.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the bombings, which also injured 12, police said.

Police spokesman Gen. Ajirawit Suphanaphesat said on the iTV television network Sunday that authorities were inspecting six more locations where there were suspicious packages.

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Bombings and shootings occur almost daily in Thailand's three southernmost provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani, where an Islamic insurgency that flared in January 2004 has killed more than 1,900 people.

Muslims make up the majority in overwhelmingly Buddhist Thailand's deep south, where they have long complained of discrimination.

The insurgents are not known to have launched any attacks in Bangkok.

Thailand has also been immersed in political turmoil.

In September, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was ousted in a bloodless coup by Gen. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin. The military installed Surayud Chulanont as the interim prime minister until elections in October 2007.