- Koh Samui News
Shane Warne dies in Thailand – friends tried CPR for 20 minutes – OBITUARY
Thai Police have made a statement today that they don’t suspect foul play in yesterday’s death of legendary Australian cricketer Shane Warne. The 52 year old, who had only arrived on Koh Samui for a vacation with fiends on Thursday, died of a suspected heart attack sometime early on Friday. “No foul play was suspected at the scene based on…
- World News
UKRAINE UPDATES: Broadcasters pull out of Russia, oil soars to US$115
• US broadcasters, CBS News and ABC News have joined the ranks of news outlets suspending their work in Russia after President Putin announced new sanctions for international broadcasters in Russia. President Vladimir Putin signed the new law saying he would impose prison terms of up to 15 years on people charged with spreading “fake news” about the war in…
- Tourism News
Travel in 2022 – how Russia is reshaping the world’s travel industry
Russians were the most visible travellers heading to Thailand post February 1, 2022, when the Thailand Pass Test & Go option was rebooted. Even with its 2 days of pre-booked SHA+ quarantine and PCR tests, along with US$50,000 Covid insurance (which has since been reduced to $20,000), the Russian travellers were delighted to jump on a plane and take the…
- Koh Samui News
Australian cricket legend Shane Warne dies in Koh Samui villa
The legendary Australian cricketer and leg-spinner, Shane Warne, has died of a suspected heart attack whilst holidaying on Koh Samui, Thailand. He was aged 52. During his career Warne took 708 Test wickets in 145 cricket matches during a 15 year international career. . His take of wickets was the second most of all time. He was found “unresponsive” in his…
- Covid-19 News
Positive results from antigen test reach record high in Thailand
The number of positive results from rapid antigen test kits reached a record high. Yesterday, the Thai health officials reported 42,138 positive results from the ATKs which need to be confirmed with an RT-PCR test to be included in the government’s official Covid-19 count. It’s unclear what the actual number might be as many people who test positive in a…
- Thailand News
Local government under fire again for shady street lamp purchases
An anti-corruption watchdog group is once again calling out a local government organisation for another purchase of expensive street lamps in Thailand. Many have accused a local administrative organisation in Samut Prakan, the next province just south east of Bangkok, of overpaying for the solar-powered lamps adorned with kinnaree figures of a mythical half-bird, half-woman, painted gold. Hundreds of the…
- World News
UKRAINE UPDATES: 2nd round of peace talks ends without ceasefire, Zelensky asks for meeting with Putin, planes
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its second week, here are the major stories circulating today… • Russian and Ukrainian negotiators agree to organise humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians, though little concrete progress has been made after the second day of peace talks between representatives from Kyiv and the Kremlin. The second round of talks in four days took place in…
- World News
UKRAINE UPDATES: Russia captures key port city, 1 million refugees have fled
This is the first of The Thaiger’s daily update briefs on, not only the ongoing battles across Ukraine, but the key milestones covering the rest of the international perspective relating to the story. These will be updated twice a day and also be part of a new daily program on The Thaiger YouTube channel. • As the Russian invasion of…
- World News
China asked Russia not to invade Ukraine — until after the Olympics, Biden officials say
In early February, China asked Russia to delay its invasion of Ukraine until after the Winter Olympics in Beijing, according to a New York Times report, which quoted a European official and officials from the Biden administration, who cited a report from a Western intelligence agency. The intelligence report showed that high-level Chinese officials had some degree of knowledge regarding…
- Visa Information
UPDATE: Thailand Pass Test & Go 3.0 opens for new registration TODAY
UPDATE (March 1): Thailand’s revamped Test & Go travel scheme under the Thailand Pass system is open for new registration from today! Apply now for no PCR test or hotel quarantine on Day 5. Keep reading for the full details on what’s new and why you should travel to the Land of Smiles… Note: People who received their Thailand Pass…
- World News
Bali to trial a quarantine-free entry scheme this month
On a trial basis, Indonesia’s resort island Bali will start allowing foreign travellers to enter without undergoing a quarantine. A senior minister says the new travel policy will start March 14, or sooner, depending on the Covid-19 situation in Bali. The Indonesian government will extend the travel scheme across the country if the trial is successful. To enter Bali from…
- Bangkok News
One of north India’s most wanted gangsters found in Thailand, entered on fake passport
A gangster wanted in India on multiple murder charges was arrested in Delhi after he was detained and deported from Thailand on Tuesday. Indian media say the man was a key member of the Lawrence Bishnoi-Kala Jathedi syndicate and was known as one of the most wanted criminals in north India. 28 year old Virender Partap, also known as Kala…
- Phuket News
Russian Ambassador meets with Phuket officials, discusses establishing a sister city
Impeccable timing! The Russian Ambassador to Thailand met with officials in Phuket to discuss establishing Russia’s Kamchatka Krai Administrative Region as a sister city and other matters that affect the roughly 8,000 Russian citizens on the island. Vice Governor Pichet Panapong says Thai authorities are in the process of reviewing the Memorandum of Understanding with the region, adding that it…
- Thailand News
Hoteliers asked to issue refunds to Test & Go travellers for Day 5 packages
With the government scrapping the Day 5 requirements for Test & Go travellers, more than 2,000 hotels and their partner hospitals or test centres are being asked to refund the costs of a night stay with Covid-19 RT-PCR testing. Under the revised entry requirements, travellers can take a self-administered antigen test instead of a PCR test on the fifth day…
- Thailand News
More than 100 officers investigate local politician fatal shooting
More than 100 law enforcement officers have been assigned to investigate a case where gunmen attacked a van carrying members of a tambon administrative organisation, or TAO, on Valentine’s Day in the central province Nakhon Nayok. A politician of the tambon, or subdistrict, and the driver were killed in the shooting. A TAO chairperson was injured. In an order by…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s ban on “claw” machines could be reversed after Chiang Mai ruling
The popular “claw” machines at arcades and malls, some filled with stuffed animals or toys, are actually banned in Thailand because, back in 2020, the Interior Ministry announced that the games of technique and chance were considered “gambling tools.” But the two-year ban could be reversed after a recent ruling in Chiang Mai. Earlier this month, the Chiang Mai public…
- World News
The west weaponises SWIFT as it ramps up sanctions against Russia
The US, European Commission, UK, France, Germany, Italy and Canada have announced they will cut “certain Russian banks” off from the world’s SWIFT bank code system, the global security network that connects thousands of financial institutions. The group said they will “collectively ensure that this war is a strategic failure for Putin”. “This will ensure that these banks are disconnected…
- World News
BTS score their second win as ‘Global Recording Artist of the Year’ from International Federation of the Phonographic Industry
Superstar K-pop band BTS have won the The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s 2021 Global Recording Artist of the Year award, again. It’s the second year in a row for the seven-member group. BTS again received the award based on their worldwide performance across digital and physical music formats over the past 12 months. Around the world, BTS were…
- World News
Vietnam resumes flights to 20 countries, prepares to welcome international tourists in March
Vietnam has reopened air routes to 20 countries and regions in an effort to resume socio-economic activities – compared to 28 in the 2019 winter flight schedule pre-pandemic – a transport official says. The Vietnam Ministry of Transport says the resumed routes included those to Australia, Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, the Vietnam…
- World News
Malaysian PM visits Thailand to discuss border reopening, deep-south conflict
Malaysian PM Ismail Sabri Yakob is undertaking his first official visit to Thailand today as his nation’s prime minister. During his 3 day visit, he’ll be meeting with his Thai counterpart, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, to discuss bilateral cooperation, vaccines, and the reopening of the countries’ shared border, according to a statement from the Malaysian foreign office. “Focus areas include economic…
- Tourism News
Travel Guide: Thailand Pass “Test & Go” 3.0 – All you need to know!
There’s good news on the horizon for those looking to travel to Thailand. The CCSA has just updated requirements for entry into Thailand, making it easier to enter the Land of Smiles — with a big smile of your own. Beginning March 1, travellers by air, land and water will be able to register to enter Thailand under the revised…
- Tourism News
Thailand Test & Go update: No more Day 5 pre-paid hotel or PCR test
From the start of March, the requirement for the 2nd pre-paid PCR test on Day 5 after your arrival in Thailand will be dropped. But it will instead be replaced with a rapid antigen test you can take yourself (freely and cheaply available at any convenience store). In addition, the required ‘Covid’ insurance will be reduced from $50,000 to $20,000.…
- Phuket News
Phuket police officially ban electric scooters from public roads, in wake of ‘scooter-gate’ crackdown on tourist rentals
In the wake of last week’s “scooter-gate” crackdown in Patong, electric scooters have now been officially banned from all public roads in Phuket. Local police stations received an official notice from Major General Sermphan yesterday clarifying how the stand-up form of scooter transportation, popular among tourists on the island, fits in with existing traffic laws. He stated that anyone caught…
- Crime News
UPDATE: Junior policeman admits guilt over 9 charges relating to Bangkok zebra crossing death
UPDATE: In an evening session, Pol L/C Norawich Buadok admitted guilt to the nine charges laid over the incident on January 21 where opthalmologist Waraluck Supawatjariyakul was hit and killed when the officer’s Ducati motorbike hit her on a zebra crossing in downtown Ratchethewi, Bangkok. The nine charges include driving a vehicle with no licence plate, using a vehicle without…
- Thailand News
Public Health Ministry assures government will continue to cover covid treatment costs — for critical cases
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul assured Thai citizens that their Covid-related costs will continue to be covered after planned changes to the Universal Coverage for Emergency Patients scheme — or UCEP — takes effect in March. He also dispelled rumours that the existing scheme would be abandoned altogether, reaffirming that citizens infected with…
- Thailand News
Police arrest key suspect in Nakhon Nayok murders
Standing shirtless in the sun on the roadside, a local man in Nakhom Nayok had a rude awakening this morning when police arrested him as a key suspect in the murder of two men and the wounding of another earlier this month. The man was arrested this morning when around 300 local and provincial officers searched the Bang Somboon area…
- World News
Office and retail property predictions for Asia Pacific in 2022
CBRE, leading international property consultants, foresees a record year for Asia Pacific commercial real estate investment in 2022, driven by steady economic growth and pent-up investor demand, according to the company’s 2022 Asia Pacific Real Estate Market Outlook. CBRE expects total investment volume this year to grow by at least 5% to more than US$150 billion, surpassing the previous pre-pandemic…
- China News
Alibaba and Tencent sites added to US ‘notorious markets’ list
The US government has added popular e-commerce sites operated by China’s Tencent and Alibaba to its “notorious markets” list. The US Trade Representative’s office said on Thursday that is was adding the two online markets to its growing list of 42 online and 35 physical markets that are alleged to facilitate or engage in widespread piracy of copyright and trademark…
- World News
Vietnam’s vaccine passport pilot programme for international travellers enters phase 2
Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has released guidelines for implementing the second phase of its COVID-19 vaccine passport pilot programme to welcome international tourists. Phase 2 will continue from now until the country’s full reopening of arrival and departure tourism activities via air, land, and sea routes, which is set for March 15. Read: Tourism officials in Vietnam…
- World News
Taiwan to impose athlete code of conduct in wake of controversy at Beijing Winter Olympics
The Taiwan Sports Administration announced yesterday that national team athletes must abide by a new code of conduct to compete in the upcoming Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, in September. The rules are being drafted in response to Taiwanese speedskater Huang Yu-ting’s (黃郁婷) seemingly unpatriotic behavior on the international stage. Huang, who was the flag bearer for Taiwan at the…
