- World News
Philippines plummets in to recession as virus numbers spike
The Philippines, reeling from Covid-19 lockdowns that have destroyed businesses and thrown millions out of work, plunged into recession after its biggest quarterly contraction on record, data showed today. The Philippine Statistics Authority says GDP 16.5% year-on-year in the second quarter as the country endured one of the world’s longest stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of the virus that’s…
- Crime News
Bangkok casino gunman’s killer surrenders, confesses
In the ongoing saga of Monday’s fatal shooting a Bangkok gambling den, a suspect surrendered to police today for shooting dead a gunman in the illegal casino in Bangkok’s Yannawa district. A man calling himself “Boy BanKrua” turned himself in to police and handed in the gun he allegedly used. The suspect says he shot 61 year old Taworn Sisot,…
- Crime News
Police questioned as casino shootout evidence goes missing
Bankok police are being questioned over their handling the Monday’s shooting incident at an illegal gambling den in the capitol’s Thung Mahamek area, in which 4 people, including a police officer, died, and whether officers are concealing evidence. The secretary-general of the Justice Reform Institute said yesterday that police appear to be treating the shooting in the same way they treated…
- Covid-19 News
COVID-19 update: 2 new cases found in state quarantine, no new deaths (August 6)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration this morning reported 2 new cases of Covid-19, both returnees from the US, bringing the national total of confirmed cases to 3,330 since the outbreak began in January. A CCSA spokeman said the new patients are a 42 year old man aged 42 and a woman, aged 62, both Thai nationals. They arrived on…
- World News
Latest travel advisories for SE Asia, UK, Canada
While Thailand’s borders are still closed to all but a very few foreign visitors, there are outbound flights to some destinations, but the Covid-19 crisis means that entry requirements are fluid and often unpredictable; Singapore will require some returning residents who self-quarantine to use an electronic monitoring device effective August 10, while Myanmar has extended the ban on international flights.…
- Bangkok News
US ambassador visits Thai clean-tech company Equator Pure Nature
The United States Ambassador to Thailand, Michael George DeSombre visited American-founded Thai clean-tech pioneer Equator Pure Nature yesterday to discuss perspectives on US businesses and American-founded companies in Thailand, their contributions to Thai society, primarily during the Covid-19 pandemic, and their role in assisting the development of Thai entrepreneurs, particularly women. Thailand is among countries recognised worldwide as having best…
- Covid-19 News
Tourism sector pin hopes on “Safe and Sealed” scheme to lure international visitors
In the latest plan to bolster Thailand’s withering tourism industry, business operators are proposing a new inbound tourism plan called “Safe and Sealed”, to replace the delayed “travel bubbles” scheme and prevent Thailand realising the worst-case revenue scenario of only 675 billion baht next year, down from 3 trillion in 2019. At a joint meeting yesterday of the Tourism and…
- Crime News
Unidentified woman attacks foreign man in Pattaya
Police in Pattaya report that a foreign man was attacked by an unidentified woman in front of a restaurant on the city’s Beach Road. The incident occurred at 6:15pm yesterday at a McDonald’s located on Beach Road between Soi 5 and Soi 6. The man, whose name and nationality are being withheld by police, was attacked by a Thai woman…
- Bangkok News
Harry Potter-themed protest openly questions monarchy’s role
Thai protesters strayed into more sensitive territory Monday night as they added the prickly, and largely taboo, topic of the Thai monarchy to the list of issues to include in their demonstrations. At a Harry Potter-themed rally, dubbed “Harry Potter versus You-Know-Who or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named”, anti-government demonstrators at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument demanded changes to Thailand’s revered monarchy and called for curbs…
- Phuket News
Dozens of Burmese, Thai workers demand back pay, benefits in Phuket
An estimated 100 Burmese and Thai workers went to Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday to report their employer for not paying them for 3 months, and to try and get some clarity if they still have jobs. They filed their complaint with the ombudsman’s office and the Labour Protection Social Security Office. 27 year old Burmese national Min Thu Khu explained…
- Crime News
Police seize property valued at 200 million baht from suspected hill tribe drug gang – VIDEO
Anti-narcotics police in 4 provinces seized property valued at around 200 million baht from a suspected drug trafficking gang… mostly northern hill tribe people, in coordinated raids yesterday. 30 targets in Bangkok and Hua Hin, as well as in northern and southern provinces, were raided by armed officers. 24 houses, 5 shophouses, 12 land title deeds, 22 cars and 27…
- World News
Vietnam battles new, more contagious Covid-19 strain
Vietnam’s acting health minister reported 28 new cases of Covid-19 infection yesterday, bringing its total confirmed cases to 670, as well as 2 more deaths from the disease, making the tally 8 deceased Vietnamese. 27 of the new cases were reported in the central city of Da Nang, central Quang Nam province and southern Dong Nai province, among whom 16…
- Pattaya News
Chon Buri battles dengue fever outbreak
Chon Buri province’s Si Racha subdistrict is starting a campaign to stem the spread of dengue fever, including widespread fogging to reduce population of disease-bearing mosquitoes. Dengue fever is a seasonal threat in Thailand and has been especially dangerous this year, with 25,708 cases nationwide, 15 of them fatal, in the first 7 months of the year. In Si Racha…
- Northern Thailand News
7 Nakhon Panom officers transferred after cell death
7 police officers in the upper northeastern province of Nakhon Panom have been “transferred to inactive duty” while an investigation takes place into the death of a man in their custody. The commander of Nakhon Phanom provincial police said yesterday that he’s ordered a probe into the case and moved the officers involved to prevent anyone tampering with the evidence.…
- Transport News
Koh Samui bridge collapse leaves truck stuck under pier
In the second setback in a week for the beleagured Raja Ferry Co., a steel boarding bridge for vehicles at Raja 1 ferry pier on Koh Samui collapsed yesterday, leaving a truck wedged under the wharf. The incident follows Saturday’s ferry disaster in which 3 people are confirmed dead and 3 remain missing. The pier is one of the 3…
- Crime News
PM vows to “spare no one” in fatal casino shooting
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has says he will “spare no one” if Monday night’s fatal shooting shooting in a Bangkok gambling den involved illegal police activity. He was reacting to the shooting death of Watthanaset Samniangprasert, an interrogation inspector at Samae Dam police station in Bang Bon district, and 3 others, 1 of them a woman, at a gambling den in…
- Politics News
Thai PM says he supports changes to Constitution
In an apparent nod to the student protests which have swept the nation for over 2 weeks, Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has promised to push for constitutional amendments, saying the government will present its version of a charter rewrite bill in the next parliamentary session. Speaking after yesterday’s weekly cabinet meeting, Prayut said his position has been to support the…
- Northern Thailand News
Korat driver injured after smashing into Buddhist shrine
A driver in the northeastern Nakhon Ratchasima province, aka Korat, sustained sustained serious injuries after his pickup truck slammed into a Buddhist shrine. Police were notified of the accident in the Klui sub-district. Police and emergency responders rushed to the scene to find a pickup truck crashed into a concrete religious pillar shrine in the middle of a roundabout. The…
- Economy News
Swiss clothing firm denies layoffs
Contradicting earlier reports, Triumph International (Thailand) has denied any link with a garment company that laid off 800 employees on Friday. A statement from the Swiss Triumph Holding AG on yesterday said the company sold its production facilities in Thailand to Body Fashion (Thailand) 4 years ago. Accoding to the company’s head of corporate communications: “In fact, Triumph has handed…
- Crime News
Ratchaburi man arrested for murder, faking his own death
Police in the western Ratchaburi province say a man, facing a possible jail sentence, faked his own death by killing another man, staging a car crash and burning the body. The announcement comes nearly a week after police discovered the body of a man who had apparently burned to death in a vehicle at a car upholstery shop. It was…
- Economy News
Hundreds left jobless as Air Force cancels golf club contract
Hundreds of people were left jobless in Chiang Mai yesterday after Wing 41, a property owned by the Royal Thai Air Force and the location of the Star Dome Golf Club, put up a sign cancelling its contracts with all renters. According to Wing 41, all contracts expired yesterday and as of today Star Dome will no longer be open…
- Crime News
Facemask business dispute leads to shooting
Bangkok police say a business rivalry over facemasks was the reason behind a gunfight that left a man injured in the city’s Bang Khae district. Officers at Lak Song Police Station were informed early this morning that a yellow Porsche was fired at many times in front of a Bang Khae home. The injured man was sent to hospital. Initial…
- Crime News
Red Bull witness drank with other biker before his death: police
In the latest development in the case of Red Bull scion Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya, police in Chiang Mai now say the key defence witness who died Thursday in a motorcycle accident was seen drinking with the other motorcyclist involved before the incident. Officers say they used CCTV video to trace the route of the 2 motorcyclists to a karaoke bar.…
- Covid-19 News
Covid-19 UPDATE: 5 new cases found in quarantine, no deaths (August 2)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced 5 new cases of the virus in state quarantine, all Thais returning from abroad. The new cases bring the total number of infections in Thailand to 3,317 since the outbreak began. There hasn’t been a community infection of Covid-19 for over 2 months. 7 people were discharged from hospital today bringing the total…
- Economy News
Thai Airways to operate repatriation flights to Denmark, Taiwan
Thai Airways has arranged 2 repatriation flights to Taipei and 2 to Copenhagen this month, to bring back foreign nationals who were stranded by the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline’s acting president says the Taiwan flights will fly on August 5 and 14, leaving Suvarnabhumi Airport at 8:25am and arriving in Taipei at 1:05pm local time; Chansin Treenuchagron said the flights…
- Northern Thailand News
Wanted drug dealer killed in Korat shootout
Police in in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, aka. Korat, say the drug dealer who shot and seriously injured an undercover officer and fled, was killed in a shootout in Khong district yesterday. On Wednesday, 38 year old Phadungsil Lohakart allegedly shot officer Song Tuaykrathok, who was posing as a buyer of crystal methamphetamine, after realising it was a…
- Economy News
Survey: China travel may take a year to recover
Data from the latest travel report by ITB China Travel Trends show that it’s possible – even likely – that the Chinese outbound travel market will take up to a year to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. The survey of 200 Chinese outbound travel agents examined the anticipated travel behaviour of outbound Chinese tourists once the beginnings of recovery are…
- Crime News
Pattani police hunt thief in fatal bag snatching – VIDEO
Police in southern province of Pattani, along the Malaysian border, are hunting for a thief on a motorcycle who snatched the bag of a woman riding pillion on another motorbike, causing her to fall, fracturing her skull and killing her. Video footage from CCTV cameras on the road in Pattani’s central district shows the suspect, wearing a mask and full-face…
- Business News
Trump threatens US TikTok ban
Donald Trump said yesterday that he plans to sign an executive order – perhaps as soon as today – banning the Chinese-owned short-video app TikTok from the US. Such a ban would mark the culmination of national security concerns over the safety of personal data handled by TikTok’s parent company, Beijing-based ByteDance, which became 1 of only a handful of…
- Phuket News
Korean man in Phuket suicide
In an apparent suicide, the body of a South Korean man was found in a pickup truck in the city district of the southern resort province of Phuket yesterday, his head covered in a plastic bag. Police found the white pickup, with Phuket licence plates, in the car park of the Golden Triangle Been Co. in tambon Vichit after being…
