A court in Thailand has sentenced two men to death over the 2015 bombing at a Bangkok shrine that left 20 people dead, marking the deadliest attack of its kind in the country’s history.
The ruling, delivered on Thursday after years of delay, found the two Uighur defendants guilty of premeditated and attempted murder for their involvement in planting an explosive device at the Erawan Shrine in the commercial center of Bangkok on August 17, 2015.
“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.
The accused, identified as Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed, both denied all charges brought against them throughout the proceedings.
The trial, which stretched over roughly a decade, concerned a devastating attack in Thailand’s capital that also injured more than 100 people. Proceedings were repeatedly delayed due to disruptions caused by COVID-19 and difficulties in arranging translation services.
The explosion, believed to have been caused by a backpack containing explosives, occurred at the Erawan Hindu shrine, a popular site among tourists, including several Chinese nationals who were among the fatalities.
