- Central Thailand News
Ratchaburi explosion injures 4
4 people are injured in the western border province of Ratchaburi, 1 seriously, after an explosion caused by a gas leak at a food shop in the central city district this morning. The blast occurred on the ground floor of a 3 storey commercial building opposite Boromrajonani College of Nursing, according to police, who were notified at around 6:30am. Firefighters…
- Covid-19 News
“Travel bubbles” to require minimum 2 week stay
“Travel bubble” tourists who visit Thailand during its soft and timid reopening phase, tentatively scheduled for August, may have to spend 14 days in designated areas. Then, a negative test for Covid-19 after 2 weeks would free them up to go anywhere in the Kingdom. Thailand’s tourism and sports minister says he’s met with PM Prayut Chan-o-cha about creating travel…
- Crime News
Bangkok clinics in 72 million baht fraud scandal
The National Health Security Office has registered a complaint against 18 clinics in Bangkok, and thousands of patients will be questioned by police investigating an alleged 72 million baht in fraudulent claims under the government’s 30 baht scheme, also known as the “gold card” scheme. Police said yesterday that as many as 10,000 patients of the rogue clinics may be…
- Transport News
Thai Airasia ponders second Bangkok hub
Despite reports that Air Asia’s future is in doubt, Thai AirAsia says it’s considering making Suvarnabhumi airport its new hub, alongside its already established hub in Don Mueang Airport, to increase revenue and broaden its traveller appeal. The executive chairman of Asia Aviation, the largest shareholder of TAA, says the airline is conducting a feasibility study on the move to…
- Covid-19 News
Quotas for returning Australians to be halved amid Melbourne outbreak
As Australia struggles with a new Covid-19 outbreak in Melbourne, Australian PM Scott Morrison has announced that from this Monday he’s cutting the number of Australians allowed to reenter the country by half – from 8,000 to only 4,000 daily. He says the move is needed to devote resources to countering the “very concerning” domestic virus surge. Authorities there have…
- World News
Combined force arrests 107 illegal Cambodian migrants within a day
Immigration officials in Sa Kaeo province, together with border police and the Thai military, have arrested 107 illegal immigrants since yesterday. Sa Kaeo lies about 200 kilometres east of Bangkok at the Cambodian border. The commander of the Burapha Armed Forces (Tigers of the East) – the nickname of the military clique attached to the 2nd Infantry Division, the Queen’s…
- Crime News
Over 1,400 arrested, fined for illegal motorbike races in Udon Thani
In a move reminiscent of last week’s public shaming in Chon Buri, police in the northern province of Udon Thani have hired a local steamroller to destroy hundreds of illegally modified motorcycle mufflers. More than 1,400 alleged street racers were arrested and almost 370 motorcycles seized in a week long crackdown on illegal racing in the province. Udon Thani’s police…
- Events
Thai sports minister optimistic about Olympic boxing gold
Thailand’s minister of tourism and sports says he’s optimistic that Thai boxers will win a gold medal at next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games (if the Games are held at all). Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn visited the national team’s training camp at the National Sports Training Centre in Saraburi province, northeast of Bangkok. He was accompanied by the governor of the Sports Authority…
- World News
Mayor of Seoul dead in apparent suicide after harassment allegations
Seoul’s mayor has died in an apparent suicide the day after a former assistant made allegations of sexual harassment against him. Park Won-soon, a former human rights lawyer and potential presidential candidate, was found dead earlier yesterday on a mountain in the South Korean capital. The death is by far the most dramatic end to a #MeToo case in the…
- Environment News
Rescuers remove 4 metre python from Chon Buri car
A 4 metre long python has been carefully extracted from a car in Chon Buri’s central city district. It took rescue workers around 2 hours to locate and remove the reluctant reptile. Earlier, the snake was spotted by an unnamed local motorist, who stopped traffic to let the python safely cross Bypass Road in the Huay Kapi area. Afterwards it made…
- Politics News
US ambassador vows to help Thailand combat human trafficking
The US ambassador to Thailand is pledging to help Thailand achieve its goal to be upgraded from Tier 2 to Tier 1 in the annual US Trafficking in Persons Report. The report divides countries into tiers based on their compliance with standards outlined in the US Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. Tier 1 comprises countries whose governments fully comply…
- Economy News
Thai Airways creates “survival team”
Beleaguered national flag carrier Thai Airways has created a so-called “survival team” to work out a business plan to support its debt rehabilitation, according to a source at the airline. The company filed for bankruptcy protection on May 19. The survival team is tasked with producing a business plan, effective through October 31. The airline’s acting president has ordered the…
- World News
Amnesty International says Myanmar bombing civilians
Myanmar is bombing its own people, according to Amnesty International. The human rights watchdog says it has evidence that indiscriminate airstrikes by Myanmar’s military, also known as the Tatmadaw, are killing civilians, including children, amid a worsening armed conflict in the country’s Rakhine and Chin States. The attacks, and other serious human rights violations, are taking place in towns and…
- World News
State quarantine for Thais entering Singapore, while harder hit nations get a pass
Singapore’s government will continue to require that all Thai arrivals to the city-state undergo a 14 day mandatory state quarantine before being allowed to enter the country and mingle with the general population. Singapore, which has 45,298 total cases, says that Thais must serve their “Stay Home Notice” at dedicated government quarantine facilities. Arrivals from China, which has seen a total…
- Covid-19 News
US delegation arrives, submits to Covid-19 screening
The chief of staff of the US army, General James C. McConville, arrived in Thailand today with an entourage for a 2 day trip, at the invitation of the Royal Thai Army. He has also granted permission for the publication of the results of his Covid-19 swab test. McConville and his entourage landed at Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport at 10:15am…
- Expats
Facebook group names and shames “farang prices”
In days gone by, a foreigner visiting a national park or tourist site could often expect to be charged several times the price charged to a local. Now, thanks to a Facebook community naming and shaming venues that apply “farang prices” to foreign visitors, those days are, well, numbered. Members of the 2PriceThailand Facebook group are warning each other about…
- Thai Life
Blaze destroys part of historic Si Ayutthaya temple
Wat Chang Thong, built in the Ayutthaya period, has suffered severe fire damage last night as a blaze gutted one of its teak pavilions. Damage is estimated at 20 million baht. Police say the inferno at the temple in tambon Ko Rian, Si Ayutthaya district was reported about 9pm. The area is about 2 hours north of Bangkok city. Some…
- Crime News
Guinean man held for alleged rape of a minor in Bangkok
A man from the western African nation of Guinea was arrested at a McDonald’s in Bangkok’s Bang Rak area for allegedly raping a 17 year old girl. 58 year old Mamady Keita, reportedly a ruby trader, is accused of luring the girl to a hotel in the Phya Thai area and assaulting her. The girl told police that she’d been…
- Thailand News
Activists want Thailand to lead total ban on wildlife trade
With the Covid-19 pandemic continuing to sweep the globe and the World Health Organisation saying 75% of all emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic, campaigners against wildlife crime say Thailand could become a global leader in helping to prevent pandemics by cracking down on poaching and ceasing to be a gateway for illegal wildlife trade. Activists believe this could help stop…
- Politics News
Outgoing army chief says no plans for US base on Thai soil
Outgoing army chief Apirat Kongsompong, is denying that the US is seeking to establish a military base on Thai soil. At a press briefing, Apirat said that Thai and US troops have only carried out joint military drills, code-named Cobra Gold, and nothing more. The drills are a multinational exercise held annually in Thailand. Apirat insisted the US did not…
- Covid-19 News
Doctors say Covid-19 first wave may be over, but warn against complacency
A spokesman for the Department of Disease Control says the “first wave” of the Covid-19 outbreak in Thailand is over after the country seeing no cases of community transmissions for 44 straight days. Dr Anupong Sujariyakul warned, however, that the kingdom must be prepared for the possibility of a second wave, as the contagion is still spreading in many parts…
- Northern Thailand News
Chiang Mai-Chiang Rai highway closed by flooding again – VIDEO
There seems no end in sight for the construction of the Chiang Mai-Chiang Rai highway as yet another night of severe rains caused massive flooding in the Doi Saket district. The bypass and the road were underwater, creating a traffic pandemonium. The police came to the scene and began suggesting alternative routes. As the waters subsided the road was opened again,…
- Thailand News
UPDATE: Thai Cabinet approves civil partnership bill
The Thai cabinet has today endorsed a bill allowing registration of same-sex couples, as well as legal amendments to ensure same-sex couples have the same rights and privileges as opposite-sex couples. The bill and the amendment will now be put to a vote in the Thai parliament. The government’s deputy spokeswoman says the new Civil Partnership Bill and the amendment…
- Events
900 million budget for MotoGP gets Cabinet nod
The Cabinet today gave the green light (pun intended) to the Tourism and Sports Ministry’s proposal to earmark 900 million baht for MotoGP race from 2021-2025. The ministry predicts the races will generate at least 3 billion baht in revenue. The licences for holding the motorbike races cost the government 100 million baht annually. Authorities paid 300 million for licences…
- Covid-19 News
Thai activist cries foul on government over US diplomat skirting quarantine
A transparency campaigner dubbed ” Thailand’s complainer-in-chief ” is accusing the government of negligence for allowing the chief of the US army to enter the country without having to go through a mandatory quarantine upon arriving. Activist Srisuwan Janya says he fears the visit of a delegation from the country with by far the most Covid-19 cases (not to mention…
- South Thailand News
Volunteer ranger shot dead in Yala
Police report that a volunteer ranger has been shot dead by a gunman on a motorcycle in the Raman district of the southern border province of Yala this morning. According to a radio report called into the Thathong police station, the attack occurred about 8:45am in front of Prachanukroh 41 School on the Kotabaru-Thung Yang Daeng road. Witnesses say 43…
- Northern Thailand News
Millions of meth pills, tonnes of marijuana seized in 3 major drug hauls
In what is becoming an increasingly common story, police have announced the seizure of millions of methamphetamine pills (ya ba) and more than 2 tonnes of marijuana, among other types of illicit drugs, in 3 major anti-drug operations last week. The head of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau told a press briefing that drug agencies confiscated nearly 1.5 million methamphetamine pills,…
- Covid-19 News
First post-Covid flight from China lands in Bangkok
The first charter flight from China to Thailand has landed in Bangkok, after Thailand partially lifted its 3 month ban on foreign arrivals on July 1. Yesterday, a Spring Airlines flight flew 31 Thai nationals and 21 members of a Chinese company in Thailand from Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International airport. All foreigners, except those with work…
- Covid-19 News
Trump announces withdrawal from WHO over China claims
The UN has announced that the US is leaving the World Health Organisation effective July 6, 2021, after official notice from US President Donald Trump, who has been sharply critical of the agency’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. He had accused the WHO of being “a puppet of China”. The WHO has denied assertions by President Trump that it promoted…
- Economy News
Government defends “monkey business” after PETA call for boycott on Thai coconut products
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the US-based animal rights group, is no stranger to controversy and has been accused of double standards in the past. Now it faces accusations of “cultural racism” after its open call to ban all Thai coconut products because some of the coconuts may have been harvested by monkeys. In a statement issued this…
