reshuffle. a constitution was to be introduced earlier today. that will be voted on probably in early september, and it would allow for a referendum on the constitution in turn paving the way for general elections that could signal the end of the military government. but there is so much political issues at stake that there is a lot of talk that the opposition may--that the government may try to influence that the constitution be voted down, allowing the government to stay in power another six months into early 2017. >> okay, veronica, thank you very much for that. you're watchin watching that very closely for us. just to remind you what you were seeing on the screen there it is

local time of 9:30 p.m. bangkok. what you can see is smoke and emergency services responding to a motorcycle bomb that went off in the center of the capital, the thai capital of bangkok. at least 27 people have been confirmed dead according to the routers news agency, up to 80 people may have been injured. we understand that they've been taken to a number of hospitals located in the capital of bangkok, and an appeal has been put out for blood to help those who are dealing with horrific injuries, and a bomb disposal squad also on the scene very quickly after suspicion that is there was a second device at the

scene. as far as the scene itself, this we understand was the shrine, a very busy tourist destination, but also very popular with religious groups. it's a hindu site, and many thais also use that shrine itself. very busy area, this has been described as a soft target for whoever was behind. no responsibility yet, so whoever was behind this attack has inflicted a lot of injuries. 27 people killed, in fact, so far. that number could well go up. what you're looking at at the moment is one of the police cordons that has been put in place around the intersection, a very busy intersection. it's actually located in front of that hindu shrine. the shrine also there a number

of hotels. you know this area very well. you're speaking to us on the line here. just describe it to us, please. >> yes, the actual area is incredibly popular with foreign tourists, and with locals alike. it's the main thoroughfare leading to several high profile shopping centers, and also leads towards some of the major hotels in the area. as veronica mentioned in one of her earlier reports. the big hotels including the crown plaza. the shrine itself is also very popular tourist location. there is a big skyway above the road level where pedestrians can walk from the hotels and

guesthouses to the shopping complexes. they can over look the shrine. this is where i took those photographs, over looking people when i was there in july. many locals come to worship. many tourists coming to photograph the shrine itself. it is a busy intersection, as veronica also mentioned, and it has shops close by it is busy throughout the day and throughout the evening because of where it is in central bangkok. it is a very popular place. at that time of the evening you would not have a low in pedestrians. you would still have people going to the shopping centers. they would be open until maybe 10:00.

so when that blast happened there wouldn't have been peopl --there would have been people in the area after sightseeing and shopping itself. >> just to remind our viewers, this took place just after 7:00 p.m. local time. when we have a look at that cctv footage there, it's clearly busy. what we're hearing is that there could be fou foreigners among the 27 killed. so very popular with tourists, isn't it. >> yes, with it being a popular shopping area. this is high-end shopping. we're talking about some of the major brand both cleating, accessories, they're all based in that--in those big shopping complexes. add to that the mix of five-star hotels, tourist locations such

as the shrine then you're going to get a mix of people. it is a thorough way for people to come get a taxi, also there are people who work in the area. it is a popular bus route going into the area and going out. people are popping in and popping out, and it is, both on the pavement area as you see in the photographs, but also above on the sky walk. and for those viewers who don't know bangkok, the sky walk connects the metro system in certain areas of the capital. there are two primary metro stops. they don't stop at the shrine, but they're at either end.

perhaps one saving grace of this blast is perhaps there weren't as many people leaving the metro at that location that could have been a big advantage. >> we'll leave it there for now. describing how busy and soft a target this was. let's speak to sue from bangkok university. now you're very close to the site itself. just tell us what you saw. >> yes, i was having dinner a half kilometer away, and i heard a very loud explosion. at first i thought it was the electrical junction, traffic is

building up, and then later i found out there was a bomb. >> what is happening now? >> right now the police have cordoned off the area. and what i have seen and i'm following very closely, this bomb was placed very, very near to the shrine, a very popular shrine. it exploded at 7:00 p.m. the bomb was aiding for maximum damage, this is no coincidence. i don't know the motive of the bombing, but naturally i think it is aiming to cause maximum

damage, and also they're wanting to announce the political viewpoint. >> we don't know who they are, obviously. we're waiting very closely and watching closely to see who is going to claim responsibility for that. just talking about the aftermath of this explosion. i've seen people describe how they were in a hopping mall, a bit of a distance away, and even there the glass was blown in. you said you were having dinner. were you helped away from the area. what sort of direction did you have from the police? >> i was about half a kilometer earlier i was not close enough to see the real damage, but what i would like to say, this is a

very, very busy intersection. and it has been used by the protesters in both camps. so this has a very symbolic meaning, i think, that the people who want to cause maximum damage also want to make a statement in that respect. >> you're describing how the area is the scene of a lot of political demonstrations. it is very early to say who is responsible, but in terms of descriptions of the type of explosives that have been used is this something new in bangkok, or would your suspicions turn in one obvious direction in terms of who would have access to such explosives, and who would want to access such a soft target?

>> yes, yes this is what we've been discussing with our team here, and we're looking at all the possibility. first of all, this has never happened before in bangkok, such a big explosion such as this. the damage is very, very extensive. from the first to the third floor of the hyatt hotel, all the windows were blown off. this is a very big explosion. the biggest we have seen. even during the height of the protest, th the anti-government protests, usually the bomb is a light bomb. but this time it's a real bomb wanting to cause maximum damage,

and they've succeeded in killing more than 20 people, i think. you're describing the hyatt hotel an, and a couple of floors were affected by it. >> yes, i can see the blasts falling out and the flames shooting out. >> you're coming from a very academic background. you say you've been discussing it with fellow academics. you do say that this is the first time that such a large scale attack has been mounded on bangkok. what are people saying on the streets. there is shock, and what other motions are they going through? >> one thing i see is that people are condemning in concert

that the person who has--the perpetrators who have done this, it is very, very cruel, and the statement they want to make is overstatement. this has never happened before in thai society. in bangkok it happened about five years ago when a pipe bomb exploded during the new year, not anywhere near this sort of explosion. >> the obvious question is why, why would somebody want to mound such a huge, huge attack on such a soft target. why the sudden change intact ticks? >> well, i think they want to make a political statement. there are three different areas,

first of all, there are people who supported this institution and also there are people protesting this institution. that's the first element. the second element is since the military have taken over, thailand have seen--what shall we say, a very, very quiet period, quiet period of no protesting, street protests and all that. thirdly, i think that the only problem facing this military government for the past 12 months is just the economic situation the military

government is in the corner, and a lot of people are blaming that because military government the economy is not that good. if you look at the worldwide recession, the european union is seeing the same problem in greece and stuff like that. i don't think this is the major cause, but there are three reasons that whatever happened today, tonight, is not far from the three areas. but we'll get more information as time goes by. >> absolutely. thank you very much for your time. thank you. so to remind you of our breaking news here on al jazeera, this is the live scene that you've got on your screens in the center of bangkok, and this has been the scene of what has been described as an unprecedented attack on ban bangkok, a massive bomb has been placed on a motorcycle.

it went off just after 7:00 p.m. in the evening. at least 27 people have been confirmed dead, and we understand that 80 have been injured an they've been taken to a number of hospitals around bangkok itself. plea has been put out for blood to help treating the injured. the scene we have at the moment is in front of a hindu shrine where the bomb was placed. it's also one of the citie city's popular landmarks. it's a shrine used by many locals within bangkok. now police have said that a second bomb was found inside the shrine. the bomb disposal team has been working to diffuse that.

thailand, bangkok, a very popular tourism destination, isn't it, veronica, really quite shocking. just shock being expressed at the scale of the attack. >> absolutely. there is very little security in this area because it is just assumed that there is little little threat of conflict or violence in the area, although it has been the scene of a political demonstration. it's been blockaded by those who support and who are anti-former

prime ministers. they were ousted last year, and the leader is now the prime minister of the country. they took over saying that the country needed an end to the political stalemate, an end to the turmoil. the security of the nation was at stake, and now we're seeing an attack on a scale that is unprecedented in this city of 12 million. high-grade explosives used. planetted on a motor bike and thousands of people come here through the day offering their prayers, burning incense, it's a very colorful scene with stalls selling garlands of jasmine and

statues, thai traditional daners and musicians also offering their services as a way of gaining merit in the buddhist religion. this is a real shock to the city. a bold and brutal thing that could have happened. i just have one update. in the last few minutes you've heard from the government spokesman. he's saying that it is too premature to say anything about who might be behind the blast. but he said that it could be from a group of these people w who, quote, lost their benefits from the current political situation. notes, implying that it could be the previous regime.

we've spoken to experts about the deep south where we've seen a resur egyptcy. when these groups conduct attacks they always leave a sitting. it's not known if such a signature has been found at the scene. although the bomb disposal teams were here very quickly after the blast itself. >> veronica, just picking up on that point. you touched on this muslim insurgency in the south. is that what you were referring to? >> yes, indeed, they've had low level conflict there. >> their attacks are often concentrated in the ma lay

heartland. it's rare for them to come into the capital, into bangkok. >> it's unprecedented. it has never happened. it is not proven at all if it has anything to do with the insurgency in the south. that must be made clear, indeed. the only time we've seen an attack clinked to the insurgency in the south outside of the provinces is in april when there was a bomb that went off in a hotel car park. it was linked to the insurgents in the south. we don't know anything yet about who was behind this attack. there are many different scenarios in a rather complex obscure political situation that will make it very difficult to read between the lines and get to the very bottom of who might

be behind it. there are already analysts who are saying that it might be the military government itself creating a situation. that's a conspiracy situation for you. >> let's go back to the streets of bangkok. this is around the intersection in the capital of bangkok. what you're seeing there is the emergency services of flood lights that have been placed. those there helping i believe to remove the injured and bodies. horrific screens described there, body parts all over the place, veronica. but i mean, this area itself is a city that really does count on the tourists. what i'm hearing were local police is that there are foreigners, possibly tourists, that are within the death toll.

initial reports suggest that ten thais, one chinese, and one filipino could have been killed, 27 killed. now the shrine itself is very popular with chinese tourists, isn't it. >> that's right. we were here shooting a piece just a few days ago, and there was a big group of mainland chinese people that were going around the shrine. there is a traditional way of going around it and offering incense to each of the four faces of the golden statue of brahma at the center of the shrine. it has become an increasingly popular destination for mainland chinese tourists, but that is not to say that there were not people of every nationalities,

including devout thais, who habitually stop at the shrine. it's a equivalent to oxford street or fifth avenue in new york. it is at the very heart of thailand's economy. and it is also a buddhist shrine or hindu shrine. this is the kind of buddhism that is practiced here. it is a very inclusive place. tourists will come to take in a local color as people make their offerings and share with local people part of the culture. >> i understand that a war room has been set up by the government in response to the

blasts helping to coordinate the blasts. this is going to be a real test now for the prime minister. >> yes, it may well be seen as one of his biggest tests since he took over from th democratically elected government were last year. in a sense this kind of attack has never happened before. but he has many other challenges in a very complex situation. on one level we have the situation where the military government is trying to put a new political system in place. through the righting of a draft solutio constitution that heavily favors the supporters of the military government.

they're going through a draft of reforms that they say would eventually lead to general elections. on another level you have the fight between the so-called red shirts and yellow shirts. those who support the clan of former prime ministers. on another level there is deep concern over what happens in the succession after the king, who is very popular, this is an issue that is barely spoken about because of very strict laws regarding respect for the palace, the institution of the palace, and for the royal families. but there are these three different levels of uncertainty

interring. >> veronica pedroza, we'll leave it there for now. a live scene coming from bangkok, capital of thailand. this is the scene of absolute carnage, is how it's being described. a massive motorcycle bomb detonated just after 7:00 p.m. local time. a very busy time at this location. the bomb was placed just outside of a shrine that is very popular with tourists and has local ties itself. 27 people have been killed, and earlier indications saying that there are foreigners in that death toll, up to 80 people have been injured. police cordoned the area. stay with us here on al jazeera for more.

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>> there wilhello there, welcome to the news hour. coming up, a motorcycle explosion kills 27 people bomb squads are trying to diffuse a second bomb. we'll be reporting live from the scene where emergency workers are working hard to provide assistance to the wounded. >> i'm absolutely horrified by the