Iranian Man Blows Off Own Leg in Thai Bombing

An Iranian man blew his own leg off in Bangkok today, as a series of explosions rocked the Thai capital, the New York Times reports. The first blast occurred in the house the man was renting in a residential neighborhood; witnesses say three men who appeared to be foreigners ran from the house after its roof was torn off, including the man who was later injured. He was disoriented and threw hand grenades at a taxi and at police officers, but the second bomb he attempted to lob failed to reach the officers and instead took his leg off. Three Thai people and the taxi driver suffered minor injuries in the explosions.

The bomber's other leg had to be amputated, Reuters reports. One of his companions was apprehended, but police were still looking for the third man; they were also working to make sure explosives found in the men's house were safeguarded. The blasts came a day after Israel accused Iran of bombing Israeli Embassy personnel in India and Georgia. Also in Bangkok, a Lebanese man who reportedly had links to Hezbollah was arrested last month and authorities discovered explosives in a nearby area, but police have not made any link between the two incidents. (More Bangkok stories.)