The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protesters holds picture of Thai King and Queen during an... 
(Vincent Thian/AP Photo)
Thailand's leader attended a Buddhist ritual Monday, seemingly indifferent to a deepening political crisis that has paralyzed his government, shut down two main airports and stranded 300,000 foreigners in the country.
The crisis is draining millions of dollars from the country's economy even as Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat appears powerless to remove radical anti-government protesters who have occupied the airports for the past week. He has refused to send in police to evict them for fear of bloodshed, instead making weak pleas for the protesters to go home.
The protesters have vowed to stay until Somchai steps down but he has refused.
Late Monday, an explosive device detonated among protesters camped outside the capital's Don Muang domestic airport. An official at Mongkut Wattana hospital said 13 people were injured by shrapnel. She spoke on condition of anonymity because she is not authorized to speak to the press.
It was the third such attack in two days by unidentified assailants targeting the protesters. So far, six people have been killed and scores injured in bomb attacks, clashes with police and street battles between government opponents and supporters.
Still, neither the army, a key player in Thai politics, nor the king has offered Somchai the firm backing he needs to resolve the crisis.
With no end to the deadlock in sight, many Thais hoped a court ruling could resolve the crisis.
A Constitutional Court is set to decide whether Somchai and others in his party committed electoral fraud — a move that would see him banned from politics and his party dissolved.
Even if that scenario comes to pass and the protesters disperse, it is expected to take at least another week before the airports become operational again.
The airport closure has severed all commercial flights in and out of the capital, forcing thousands to cancel their vacations during peak tourist season, and halted vital postal air services, preventing the arrival of everything from specialized medicines to raw fish for Bangkok's Japanese restaurants.
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