Back in the spring of 1991 I was sitting at the Mae Sai Guest House on the river between Thailand and Burma. Coulds of butterflies floated from flower to flower in the garden and on the opposite bank of the brown stream workers washed red mud from an ancient truck. I was freshly showered after a long day of motorcycling through the rugged mountains straddling the border. The cute waitress served a cold Singha with a smile, then turned her head to the sound of an approaching van.
The dusty vehicle stopped in the parking area and seven filthy backpackers exited from the interior. They must have been trekking in the hills. The owner greeted them with a friendly grin, but his mood shifted with what seemed to be a contentious attempt to haggle a better price for the lodgings. The owner shook his finger and said that the guest house was full. The backpackers got back into the van and drove off to another guesthouse down the road. I said nothing, but the owner explained, “Israeli. Want cheap price. Here already cheap. They want four people in one bed. I say no. Israeli always trouble.”
I shrugged and sucked on my beer. I had seen hundreds of young Israelis on my travels throughout Asia. Most of them had just left the army. Within two weeks their beards and hair grew to biblical lengths and they smoke ganga to achieve a senseless nirvana. Two years of enforcing the occupation in Palestine had broken their minds and they tended to treat people in foreign countries, as if they were Arabs. It wasn’t an attractive sight.
The next morning I noticed a new sign at the desk of the guest house.
NO ISRAELIS.
Thailand wasn’t my country and I was merely a guest at the small inn. I ordered breakfast and watched the river flow toward the Golden Triangle. That task took up most of the morning.
Throughout my travels I have had a few encounters with Israelis. They are happy to be away from their country, but were quick to support the actions of their government in ruling the West Bank and Gaza. They considered all Arabs to be potential terrorists. Their opinion has been backed by bombings of innocent civilians in revenge for Israeli oppression.
I only know one way to avoid terrorism.
Avoid Israelis and there are none in Sri Racha, where my wife lives with my son, Fenway, but this January the US Embassy warned its citizens about a potential bombing attack on Israeli targets in Thailand such as Koh Samui and Khao Saen Road based on the arrest of an Iranian national after the discovery of explosive devices in a warehouse in Bangkok. The man protested his innocence and Thai tourist authorities questioned the validity of the Shin Bet Intelligence.
Tuesday morning several bombs blew up a house off Sukhumvit 71. Four men tried to escape from the ruined house. One woman had already flown to Iran. The above photo shows three of the men and I noticed their footwear.
Two of them were wearing sandals.
Sneakers are much better for evading pursuit. One man attempted to stop a taxi. The driver refused to give him a ride and the man supposedly threw a grenade at the vehicle. One dropped at his feet and blew off his legs. The police captured his companion at the scene and immigration officials at a Malaysian airport pulled a third man out of the queues.
Thai government officials announced on TV that this incident was not the work of internal dark forces, but related to the mounting tensions between Israel and Iran over the development of Teheran’s nuclear capabilities. Two other attacks on Israeli diplomats had occurred in Georgia and India earlier in the week, whose modus operandi mirrored the rash of assassination bombings of Key Iranian scientists over the past years.
My beautiful friend in Palm Beach wrote to warn me of the danger to US citizens.
“What do the Iranians have against the Thai?”
I responded in a knee-jerk anti-Zionist fashion. “This is bullshit. A bombing campaign promoted by Shin
Bet to instill terror so they get a green light to nuke Iran.
My beautiful friend in Palm Beach is a little less quick to condemnation.
“This sounds like Iranians teaming up with Hezbollah. Can’t see any Iranian working with or for Shen Bet or any other Israeli group. But, I agree that Israel is the worst kind of aggressor and has been antagonizing the world’s Muslims with no thought to the consequences nor are they interested in peaceful accords. There will be more bloodshed and possibly a new war in the region in the near future. This time nukes will be used. Very scary thought.”
Nuclear war.
Just what the Neo-Con Zionists were after in their invasion of Iraq and I called my wife in Sri Racha. Mam said that the bombings had nothing to do with the Thais.
“Stupid farangs.”
And the emails to the Bangkok Post showed how panic stricken the western chickens are in Thailand.
“All iranians, not just them but all people from arab countries diplomats also. They should have their own passport control area at the airport customs checks also. every bag should go through scanners. People through body scanners. Any refusal then arrested and deported. All checks should be made on these people 24 hrs afetr arriving in the country also to see what they say is true, eg hotel staying at etc.
A 5th person they are hunting? I would say much more are involved, there is a network here, they should start in Pattaya. As this is where they started from. I am sure they will find many there with no visa’s etc.”
Another added, “I agree, however all Iranian entry into Thailand should be singled out for greater scrutiny. Iranians are large exporters of Drugs and terrorism throughout the world. Now it seems they are importing bombs and terror to Thailand. Possibly they advise the Muslim insurgents of Thailand’s deep south. Thailand should bring the Iranian Ambassador to the carpet and and inform him of Thailand’s anger and also ask for compensation for Thai property damage and injuries sustained by these Iranian Terrorists.”
The only Iranians who, I have met in Thailand have been clones of their Israeli counterparts.
They want to party far from the ever-watchful eyes of their governments.
That’s not to say that some people don’t know how to have fun.
AL JAZEERA reported that a Thai police chief saying that, “The target was specific and aimed at Israeli diplomatic staff.”
Israel’s PM warned the world that Iran’s offensive would spread worldwide, if not punished for their transgressions.
Iran said it wasn’t involved in the bombings and blamed the incident on Shin Bet’s counter-terrorist squads.
“The main goal of the Zionist regime is to conceal its real essence in carrying out terrorist acts particularly assassinating Iran’s scientists. We are not accepting, we are denying this and I don’t know how they [the Israelis] can assume within a short time of one hour that to say who has done this.”
I know nothing, but to quote Lao-tzu, the founder of Taoism, “Those that know don’t say and those that say don’t know.”
Like I said, “I know nothing.”