Thai Court Sentences Uyghur Men to Death for Bangkok Bombing

Two Uyghur men, Adem Karadag and Yusufu Mieraili, were sentenced to death for the 2015 Bangkok bombing that killed 20 people. The attack at Erawan Shrine injured another 120. The men deny charges and plan to appeal. The case took over a decade due to evidence gathering challenges.

A Thai court sentenced two ethnic Uyghur men to death on Thursday for a 2015 bombing in Bangkok that killed 20 people. The explosion, which occurred at the Erawan Shrine popular among tourists, also injured 120 others.

The convicted men, Adem Karadag and Yusufu Mieraili, denied all charges and plan to appeal, said their lawyers, Chamroen Panompakakorn and Choochat Kanpai. The court ruled the pair guilty of premeditated murder, leading to the death penalty sentence.

Despite the 2015 attack, no group took responsibility, though experts say it was retaliation for Thailand's deportation of over 100 Uyghurs to China prior. The case took over ten years to go to trial due to difficulties gathering evidence and finding interpreters.