Blast injures 25 on Taiwanese passenger train, terrorism ruled out

A suspected pipe bomb injured 25 people on a passenger train in the Taiwanese capital late on Thursday (Jul 7), officials said. An initial probe by the police has ruled out terrorism as the reason for the attack.

The blast shook Taipei's Songshan station close to midnight and witnesses quoted on Taiwanese television described seeing a man leaving a long black device on the train just before the explosion.

Channel NewsAsia correspondent Victoria Jen said police are now hunting for multiple suspects, after initially searching for a male suspect in his 40s and wearing black following Thursday night's attack. Terror attack has been ruled out by the police following its initial probe, she added.

Police's initial findings also suggest that the explosive was detonated at close range, and are not ruling out the possibility that one of the 25 injured could be involved in the incident.

Premier Lin Chuan told Taiwanese television the blast appeared to be a deliberate "act of malice".

Police and the Taipei fire department said a "steel pipe" was the origin of the blast.