Thaksin pointed the fingers to police despite claiming that he had intelligence information that separatist militants would strike.

Scores of bomb blasts hit police and government offices in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, killing one official and wounding more than 20 security personnel and civilians.

"As matter of fact, authorities knew that there would be attacks today, but they did not pay enough attention, which resulted in the loss of life," Thaksin told reporters in his hometown of Chiang Mai province.

Interior Minister Gen Kongsak Vantana, meanwhile, said the militants had made the bombs outside Thailand, without specifying which country, adding "it's difficult to find bomb-making materials here."

"The militants wanted to stage a show of force and signal that they can still mount attacks," he told reporters. "The bombs caused minimal losses because they were low-impact bombs."

Thaksin said he planned to visit the troubled south soon and rejected claims that his crackdown there since early 2004 had caused the long-running insurgency to flare up in Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces.

The explosions went off separately between 8.30 am and 9 am in Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala.

One of the bombs went off at a government office in Yala minutes before Deputy Prime Minister Chitchai Wannasathit was due for a visit in the area.

In Pattani, a local official in Pattani was killed by a bomb that went off at a tea shop known to draw a morning crowd of government employees, police said. Eight other people were injured.

Many of the bombs were planted inside bathrooms of provincial town offices and police stations, injuring three police officers in Yala and five marines in neighboring Narathiwat.

"Militants are likely to have coordinated the attacks and planned them in advance because the bombs went off between the set time," said Narathiwat's Pol Col Sommai Phutthakun.

"The militants wanted to show their power," he said.

Gen Kongsak earlier said initial reports showed that 21 homemade bombs were detonated.

He claimed intelligence had indicated that insurgents were planning a major operation for Thursday, and that damage from the blasts had been minimal.

Securities authorities jammed cellular telephone signals in the area to prevent insurgents from using mobile phones to detonate more bombs.

The Nation