Thailand grappled on Monday with the mystery of who ordered a series of blasts that killed three people in Bangkok, wounded 38, including nine foreigners, and ruined New Year celebrations.The military-installed government said intelligence pointed to politicians who had lost power, not Muslim militants waging a separatist insurgency in the far south, despite similarities of style.

?We could not at this stage pinpoint which particular group was involved,? said Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, installed after a bloodless September 19 coup toppled Thaksin Shinawatra, whose supporters he said might have been involved.?Briefs from various intelligence agencies, based on evidence available, show that they came from groups that have lost political powers,? Surayud told a news conference as police and soldiers mounted a major security operation.?These were not just the previous government, but include all those which have lost power in the past,? he added while refusing to say what evidence the government had.

Thaksin?s lawyer called the implications a ?smear campaign?. Australia said it feared more attacks and joined Britain and the United States in urging their citizens to stay indoors. ?There is a possibility of further attacks in coming days,? the Australian Embassy said. Involvement of Muslim militants, whose insurgency has cost more than 1,800 lives over the past three years but has remained confined to the far south, was a ?very remote possibility?, Surayud said.