Grenade blast wounds 46 protesters in Bangkok

By Ed Cropley

BANGKOK (Reuters) - A grenade blast wounded 46 anti-government protesters in Bangkok, hospital officials said on Sunday, the latest escalation in the country's increasingly violent political crisis.

The blast occurred around midnight at Government House, where thousands of supporters of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), who have occupied the prime minister's compound since August in a bid to unseat him, were attending a rally.

A spokeswoman for the Erawan Medical Center said at least 46 people had been wounded.

Channel 3 television showed footage of the wounded being rushed to hospital in pickup trucks. It said at least two people were in critical condition.

"I had come down from the stage about 30 minutes before the grenade dropped into a crowded area," PAD leader Suriyasai Katasila told Channel 3.

He blamed pro-government supporters for the attack, which came as the PAD's dramatic blockade of Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi international airport entered its fifth day.

The sit-ins at Suvarnabhumi, and the city's old airport Don Muang now used for domestic flights, are part of the PAD's "final battle" launched on Monday to unseat Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat.

They accuse the prime minister of being a puppet of his brother-in-law, former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and lives in exile.

Somchai, who has refused to quit, imposed emergency rule at the airports two days ago but police have made no moves to evict the thousands of protesters.

Somchai effectively sacked his police chief on Friday, blaming him for mishandling the protests, Thai media said.

The unrest has paralyzed flights at both airports, stranded thousands of passengers and sparked rumors of a military coup, even though the army chief has said he will not seize control.

"SHOOT THEM BACK"

In Saturday night's clash at Suvarnabhumi, 150 riot police fled their checkpoint after they were attacked by PAD militants armed with iron rods, slingshots and hurling firecrackers.

The onslaught lasted 15 seconds but left the five-lane highway, the main access route to the $4 billion airport, littered with broken glass and discarded police helmets and truncheons.

Earlier, about 2,000 PAD members forced riot police to abandon another checkpoint near the airport. There was no violence, but one police officer was detained by PAD "security guards," the Nation newspaper reported on its website.