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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Public Health Ministry to propose easing of restrictions for vaccinated residents
With the number of active Covid-19 cases on a downward trend, the Public Health Ministry plans to make a proposal to ease measures for those who are fully vaccinated, or who have passed Covid-19 tests, in provinces classified as “dark red” and “red” for high infection rates. The ministry plans to propose dine-in services at restaurants to be allowed for those…
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Fugitive police Chief Joe said to be captured in Myanmar
[UPDATE: Media is now reporting to have received confirmation from police sources of the information below.] A few Thai media websites are reporting the alleged capture of Pol Col Thitisan “Chief Joe” Utthanaphon, the police station superintendent seen in video with a group of officers released this week putting a plastic bag over a suspect’s head, reportedly suffocating a suspect…
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No special protection for police that allegedly killed man in custody, says police
Police inspector general Visanu Prasartthongosoth wants outraged citizens not to worry that officers will get off with a slap on the wrist for their alleged involvement in the torture death of the man they had in custody. Visanu says no special protection for the police officers will be given. Thai media says that despite reports that say Thitisan Utthaphol has…
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NACC investigating cars and wealth of fugitive Chief Joe
As the story of the 7 police officers accused of suffocating a man to death while trying to extort him for 2 million baht continues to unfold, 2 of the officers are currently fugitives, including Pol Col Thitisan “Chief Joe” Utthanaphon whose incredible wealth and fleet of cars has come under intense scrutiny. Now the National Anti-Corruption Commission has launched…
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Japan to stop using 1.63 million doses of Moderna after contaminations found
Japan is set to stop using the 1.63 million doses of Moderna after reports of contamination in multiple vials came out, says drugmaker Takeda and the health ministry today. Takeda says they had received reports from multiple vaccinations centres that “foreign substances” had been discovered inside unopened vials. The drugmaker adds that they consulted with the health ministry and decided…
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Phuket hoteliers looking to winter wonderland to bolster the Sandbox
by Bill Barnett from c9hotelworks.com As the Phuket Sandbox program continues to be the international gateway for overseas travellers to Thailand, island hoteliers are looking at what the winter season could look like. Traditionally a legacy market, many visitors during this period are called ‘snowbirds’ and are from Northern and Eastern Europe. Snowbird travellers are long-stay visitors, with a key…
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Thursday Covid Update: 18,501 new cases; provincial totals
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 18,501 new Covid-19 cases and 229 coronavirus-related deaths today. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 20,606 more recoveries. There are now 186,934 active Covid-19 cases, a downward trend over the past week. With the situation improving, restrictions are likely to be eased. Since the start of the pandemic…
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Phuket Covid-19 over 3000 total, nearly 900 this week, 189 today
Today’s Covid-19 numbers in Phuket push the overall total above 3000, bring the weekly total to just about 900 (10 times the original threshold for reevaluating the Phuket Sandbox), and sets yet another daily record. 189 new domestic cases of Covid-19 were reported yesterday, making the count for 6 of the last 7 days over 100 infections. 3 new Sandbox…
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Red Cross pleads for blood donations due to shortage
The Red Cross Society is pleading with the public to donate blood as Thailand’s hospitals are currently experiencing a severe shortage of blood reserves for patients. The shortage has led to the postponement of multiple surgeries. Director of the National Blood Centre of the Thai Red Cross Society, Dr Dutjai Chaivanichsiri, spoke earlier today to say the Covid situation has…
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Police bust gang that allegedly transported migrant workers
A gang that allegedly took Laotian migrant workers from Bangkok to the northeast of Thailand has been busted. The Chief of Immigration, Sompong “Big Oud” Chingduang told the media about the bust involving a gang is reportedly called “Jay Wan”. Multiple sources had reported the group’s alleged illicit behaviour. According to Thai media, the group had the workers book their…
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“Sandbox” tourist safety measures tightened in Phuket following murder case
Safety measures for “Sandbox” travellers in Phuket are being tightened following the suspected murder of a Swiss woman who had entered Thailand under the “Sandbox” and was found dead in a creek near the Ao Yon waterfall. Accommodations that have the SHA+ certification are being told to closely watch Phuket Sandbox Tourists who are old, feeble, women travelling by themselves,…
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19 arrested for gambling and drugs in Suphan Buri
Police arrested 19 people in the central province of Suphan Buri for illegal gambling and holding a gathering that violates the Emergency Decree. Officers also seized methamphetamine and a gun. Officers arrived at the scene and confiscated 3 bags of methamphetamine pills and a pistol. All the 19 suspects, between the ages of 23 and 50, also face drug charges.…
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UNICEF says ongoing closure of schools is affecting child development
The United Nations Children’s Fund says many young children are missing the milestone of their first day at school as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to a Bangkok Post report, UNICEF says ongoing school closures risk harming children’s development and mental health. UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore says countless children have already missed out on months of face-to-face…
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Man assaulted at Pattaya worker camp
A Cambodian worker at a camp in Pattaya sustained a severe head injury after he was reportedly beaten by teenagers. Police were alerted to the attack at 11pm a few days ago. When police got to the worker camp, they found the man lying on the ground, bleeding profusely from his head. The worker, identified 28 year old “Mr Mai,”…
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Man arrested for allegedly pretending to be a cop and sexually assaulting prostitutes
Police in Bangkok arrested a man who allegedly posed as a cop and sexually assaulted prostitutes, stealing from some of them. Allegedly, he raped sex workers more than 40 times over the past 6 months. The 34 year old man, identified as Kittipop, was arrested in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district. Kittipop allegedly admitted to police that he pretended to be…
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Figures show Covid-related deaths 2.5 times higher among pregnant women
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says Covid-related deaths in Thailand are 2.5 times higher in pregnant women. Assistant spokesperson Apisamai Srirangsan says the deaths are mainly caused by respiratory failure. Thai PBS World reports that findings from December to August 11 show that the deaths of pregnant Covid-19 patients accounted for 0.43% of all Covid-related fatalities. The Royal College…
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Restaurant operators accept rules for re-opening dine-in services
Restaurant operators are happy to accept new rules for re-opening as laid out by the Public Health Ministry, if it means they can get back to business. The measures are strict and include the need for all customers to show proof of full vaccination. According to a Bangkok Post report, the re-opening of dine-in services would be done under a…
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Manhunt launched for ex-cop who allegedly killed suspect in custody
Thai police are out to catch one of their own, with a manhunt launched for former police chief Thitisan Utthanaphon, who is on the run. The ex-cop, previously chief of police in the northern province of Nakhon Sawan, is accused of causing the death by suffocation of a drug suspect in custody. The dead man has been named as 24-year-old…
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Thursday Covid Update: 18,501 new cases and 229 deaths
18,501 new Covid-19 cases and 229 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. There have been 20,606 recoveries recorded over the past 24 hours. Thailand now has 186,934 active cases. Since April 1, the CCSA has reported 1,092,006 Covid-19 cases. Out of the new cases, 139 were found in correctional facilities. More than 40,000 inmates at…
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Bangkok Sandbox: open businesses to vaccinated customers
Perhaps feeling a bit jealous of more easily isolated tropical islands with their Sandboxes, who are reopening despite their own rising Covid-19 infections, the private sector has proposed its own reopening in the capital they are calling the Bangkok Sandbox. A “Factory Sandbox” has already been put into use in the industrial sector that maintains safety and confidence in the…
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Australia and New Zealand consider just living with Covid-19
With Covid-19 on the rise in Australia and New Zealand, officials in both countries have hinted at moving away from a strategy of eliminating the virus and instead learning to live with it. Australia has daily infection numbers nearing 1,000, setting new records each day and, while New Zealand had long avoided Covid-19 outbreaks, today the country reported 62 new…
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Keep your subscriptions! OnlyFans backs down on porn ban
Following unexpectedly widespread global mainstream media coverage, OnlyFans has backed down on its ban on explicit porn material on its platform. The announcement was made on Twitter just 2 hours ago with the promise of an official statement to be sent to the site’s more than 2 million content creators including many in Thailand. The original announcement to remove all…
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Nepal fears ‘third wave’ as COVID cases surge
As COVID cases continue to rise, Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) has warned of a third coronavirus wave, instructing all hospitals and health centers to gear up and prepare necessary measures. Nepal’s second COVID wave in mid-May had overwhelmed the Himalayan nation’s health system. Hospitals ran out of oxgen supplies, hospital beds and ventilators. “We are at the…
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Worldwide Covid-19 infections may be levelling off again
The World Health Organisation said this week that Covid-19 may be plateauing worldwide after 2 months of steady increases. The global Covid-19 totals saw 4.5 million new infections and 68,000 new deaths this week, stats that reveal only a marginal increase over last week’s totals of 4.4 million infections and 66,000 deaths. According to the WHO’s epidemiological update, the worldwide…
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Indigenous people protest land restrictions in Brazil
With feather headdresses and body paint, thousands of indigenous demonstrators camped out in Brasilia to protest President Jair Bolsonaro’s policies and an initiative that could take away their ancestral lands. SOURCE: DW News
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Tanzania: Outcry after President Samia calls women footballers ‘flat-chested’
Tanzania’s president has been criticized for describing the country’s female footballers as having “flat-chests” and being unattractive for marriage. Samia Suluhu Hassan made the remarks while hosting Tanzania’s Under-23 men’s football team at State House in the coastal city of Dar es Salaam. The president said that while female footballers were making the East African country proud by winning trophies,…
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Indonesian navy seizes tanker and crew, says they stole oil
Indonesia’s navy announced today that it has seized a tanker and the tanker’s crew, the seamen were wanted on charges of stealing almost 300,00 barrels of crude oil out of Cambodia’s reserves. The ship was stopped on July 27 while it was off the coast of Sumatra, says the Indonesian navy. Days prior, Phnom Penh had issued a red notice…
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Mobile vaccination bus to travel around Bangkok, exact locations to be visited unknown
City Hall in Bangkok is planning a new service called “BMV” which stands for Bangkok Mobile Vaccination Unit. The service will be a bus that drives to people’s houses and provides vaccination services. The service is set to start next week, says the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration spokesperson Pongsakorn Kwangmuang. Pongsakorn did not say which Bangkok areas the service will go…
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Covid delays construction of 3 train lines
The construction of 3 electric train lines has been postponed due to Covid, says the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand governor Pakapong Sirikantaramas, today. The lines are the Orange Line, the Pink Line, and the Yellow Line. Pakapong says the lines were already 4% to 5% ahead of schedule. Now, the project is 2% to 3% slower than scheduled.…
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Record 156 Covid-19 infections as Phuket edges near 800 a week
The number of weekly rolling Covid-19 infections in Phuket is poised to pass 800, as 5 of the last 7 days have seen infections of over 100 people and the 7-day total now stands at 798 new local Covid-19 infections. According to the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office, yesterday marked a new daily high of 156 new infections and one…
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