Thai court sentences two Uyghur men to death for 2015 Bangkok bombing

Two Chinese Uyghur men have been sentenced to death for carrying out a 2015 attack on a Bangkok shrine that killed 20 people.

A Thai court convicted Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed of premeditated and attempted murder for their role in planting a bomb at the popular Erawan Shrine in Bangkok's commercial heart in August 2015.

The blast tore apart the site where worshippers and tourists had gathered, injuring more than 100 people and leaving the shrine littered with motorbike fragments and singed debris.

Multiple Chinese tourists were among the dead when the explosives, which had apparently been left in a backpack, detonated.

"The defendants committed a single act that violated multiple laws. The court therefore imposed the harshest penalty available under the law, the death sentence," one member of the four-judge panel said Thursday as the lengthy verdict was read out.

The defendants, Chinese nationals who arrived in court in prison garb, were acquitted of charges stemming from a separate bombing at a pier in Bangkok's Charoen Nakhon area.

Choochat Kanpai, the defendants' lawyer, told reporters the defendants would "appeal the ruling because there are many aspects of the case that the court has not fully considered, including the treatment of the defendants during the proceedings".

The decade-long trial over Thailand's deadliest bombing was beset by delays due to coronavirus disruptions and problems securing translators.

The blast came weeks after Thailand's then-ruling junta forcibly repatriated 109 Uyghurs to China, where rights groups say the Muslim minority face cultural and religious repression.

The timing prompted speculation that the attack was part of a revenge plot against a country that had been a key transit hub for Uyghurs as Thailand's then-military leaders grew closer to Beijing.

Shortly after the bombing, police named 17 suspects, but only Mieraili and Mohammed were initially apprehended.

Thailand's junta authorities were criticised for a murky investigation that appeared to wind down shortly after the arrest of the two men.

They went on trial in 2016, but the proceedings, which have involved hundreds of witness testimonies, were delayed multiple times, including once because the translator for the accused was hit with drugs charges.

In 2017, a Thai woman called Wanna Suansan was detained on arrival in Bangkok on a warrant linked to the shrine blast — making her the third named suspect arrested by police.

She was charged with attempted murder, associated murder and possession of bombs and weapons, but was acquitted in 2024.

Uyghurs, a Turkic minority, hail from China's westernmost province, Xinjiang.

Beijing is accused of widespread human rights abuses in the region, including the incarceration of around one million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. It denies the allegations.

After hearing of the verdict, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said Beijing "supported" the action against the alleged bombers.

"China supports Thailand's judgement in accordance with the law and strong punishment for the attackers," he said.

Last year, Thailand deported another 40 Uyghurs back to China, defying calls from United Nations human rights experts who said they would be at risk of torture, ill-treatment and "irreparable harm" if returned.

Erawan Shrine remains a popular attraction for Chinese tourists to the kingdom's capital.

Wires/ABC