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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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Sponsored How much does it cost to see a doctor in Thailand?
Thailand is known for its high-quality yet affordable healthcare system, but how much does it really cost to see a doctor? As an expat, this question might be crucial for budgeting your health needs. The answer depends on whether you...
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Asia stocks rise along with coronavirus cases
Asian stocks are rising along with the number of coronavirus cases after the WHO reported the highest daily rise since the pandemic began. The fine line between a second wave in cases and the removal of lockdowns seems to favour a more conservative approach in the stock market as caution is being taken. The Nikkei 225 ranked 0.3% higher in…
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More sea turtles lay eggs on Koh Samui
It’s been years since sea turtles have been seen laying eggs on Koh Samui beaches. But this year more than a dozen sea turtle nests have popped up around the island’s coast. Just over the weekend, 70 eggs were found by villagers at Laem So beach by the Ban Sai Ree Hotel. It’s rare for the turtles to come to…
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Ring of fire delights photographers around Asia
Those who stepped outside in parts of Asia yesterday got a rare photography opportunity as the solar eclipse (partial solar eclipse in Thailand), aka. the ‘Ring of Fire’, darkened daylight during the event. Skywatchers from parts of West Africa, the Arab Peninsula, South Asia, southern China and Taiwan were the lucky ones to see the full eclipse, which features the moon…
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3 new imported cases of Covid-19 virus reported in Thailand (June 22)
Today, the Centre of Covid-19 Administration reported 3 new cases of the coronavirus with no additional deaths. This takes the total number of infections in Thailand to 3,151 and 58 deaths since the beginning of the outbreak. Today also marks the 28th consecutive day with no confirmed local transmissions of Covid-19, a milestone that is sure to give the CCSA…
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WHO reports the highest daily increase of Covid-19 cases
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported the largest single-day increase in cases of Covid-19 since the pandemic began, with over 183,000 new cases detected in the past 24 hours. Key points: The significantly larger number of cases could be due to both increased testing and wider spreading of infections There are now more than 8.7 million cases worldwide, with…
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3 killed, 2 injured in Nakhon Si Thammarat crash
3 people have been killed, one an 11 year old girl, and 2 others seriously injured, after the pick-up they were travelling in collided with a roadside tree. They were all from the same family, driving in a Ford Ranger heading to a family burial. Police say the pickup they were travelling in ran off the road, hitting a roadside tree…
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Doomsday comes and goes
Apparently doomsday has proven itself to be a hoax after it has came and went yesterday. The Mayan Calendar predicted June 21 as the day that the world would come to an end, and obviously we are all still here. But many are increasingly following such theories after the coronavirus has some saying that there will be a new world…
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Police warning: Pattaya’s beaches remain party and alcohol-free zones
Police in Pattaya are warning beach-goers that a ban on parties and the consumption of alcohol on the city’s beaches remains in force. Officers are monitoring all local beaches, particularly at weekends, when numbers increase, issuing reminders that, in addition to the ban on alcohol, people must not mingle outside their own group and must wear masks when not in…
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Australia on guard as Covid-19 cases jump in Victoria
Restrictions have been tightened once again in the Australian state of Victoria, as a surge in new Covid-19 cases has officials on high alert. A state of emergency has been prolonged by a further 4 weeks, and private homes can now have no more than 5 visitors at a time, down from the previous 10. Plans to increase the number…
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Asia on alert for Covid’s second wave
Last week’s surge in new, locally transmitted Covid-19 cases in China, serves as a reminder to the rest of Asia that the possibility of a second wave may be all too real. A similar surprise second wave hit Singapore at the start of April after it appeared the island nation had been successful in containing the new virus. As restrictions…
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Trump campaign and media tussle over Tulsa rally turnout
“In an increasingly globalised online world, the world’s youth have started getting involved in the narrative for this November’s US Presidential election.” In the days leading up to Saturday night’s election rally for US President Donald Trump – his first since March – the campaign management were touting figures suggesting that as many as 1 million people had signed up…
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Thailand’s entertainment venues and bars poised to reopen in July
Pubs, clubs and karaoke bars will be allowed to re-open in July. That’s a promise from the committee which has been rolling out Thailand’s gradual re-openings in staged phases. It will be the fifth phase of lifting the restrictions, originally imposed on all levels of business in Thailand in response to the threats from Covid-19. But, it should be stressed,…
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China traces Beijing Covid-19 outbreak to European strain
China says it’s identified a European strain of Covid-19 as having sparked the recent spike in south west Beijing suburbs, but the World Health Organisation will only say it was imported from outside the city and needs further investigation. China has released genome sequencing data which officials claim identifies a European strain of the coronavirus. 183 people have contracted the…
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Covid-19: 1 new imported case, 27 days with no local transmissions (June 21)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration this morning announced 1 new case of Covid-19 discovered in state quarantine over the previous 24 hours. The case is a 6 year old Thai boy who recently returned from South Africa on a repatriation flight. Thailand has reached 27 consecutive days without a domestically transmitted case. As of today, the total number of…
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Injured adventure cyclist rescued in Chon Buri forest – VIDEO
An off-road adventure bicyclist was rescued after a bicycle accident in a forest in Chon Buri’s Banglamung district yesterday. Rescue workers were notified of the accident at 10am in a forest near the Khao Maikaew area. Rescue workers had to hike 2 kilometres from the nearest road into the forest to find the injured cyclist, 31 year old Thanachai Poecharoen.…
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Relaxation on some social distancing measures for travel
The Thailand Civil Aviation Authority has further relaxed the restrictions on domestic airline services by removing the need for on-board social distancing (so that middle seat is now likely to be sold) CCAT Director Chula Sookmanop says that domestic airlines can sell all their seats on each flight Airlines no longer need to leave some of the seats vacant for…
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Baby elephants killed by electric fence in Chantaburi
2 baby elephants have apparently been electrocuted in the Tha Mai district of the eastern province of Chanthaburi, near the Cambodian border, when they touched an electric fence put up by an orchard owner to keep foraging animals out. A local police officer said he would summon the orchard owner for questioning about the electrified fencing. Authorities are awaiting the…
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Russian charged with credit card fraud on Koh Samui
Police in Koh Samui, in the southern province of Surat Thani, have arrested a 35 year old Russian man for allegedly using counterfeit credit cards to buy goods on the resort island. When he was arrested there were 8 fake credit cards found on him. The arrest comes after a bank employee told police of suspected irregularities in the use…
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31 illegal Cambodian migrant workers apprehended in border town
Thai immigration authorities arrested 3 Thais and 31 illegal Cambodian migrants travelling in 3 pickup trucks in Sa Kaeo, about 200 kilometres east of Bangkok, near the Cambodian border yesterday morning. 4 other vehicles managed to evade officials. The Thais stand charged with assisting illegal migrant workers. They have been identified as 39 year old driver Yotha Nadkhiew, 42 year old…
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10 arrested over spreading ‘fake news’ online
10 more suspects have now been arrested for allegedly spreading fake news by officials from the Anti-Fake News Centre. Seksarn Artasarn, admin for a Facebook page, ‘Bunterm Saikeaw’ with over 200,000 followers, has been arrested on charges of spreading fake news along with a series of drug charges. The suspect was arrested in his home in Pathum Thani province, just…
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Partial solar eclipse today, starts just after 1pm
A partial solar eclipse will be visible this afternoon, if your local weather allows. Bu in some other parts of Asia and Africa, residents will be treated to a spectacular total eclipse. If you miss this phenomenon today, the next solar eclipse, a total eclipse, on view in the Thai skies will be on April 20, 2023. For Bangkokians, the…
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Ruling PP party denies coercing opposition parties to join
A source from the ruling Palang Pracharat party says that rumours that it was trying to “coerce and persuade” members of the opposition or current coalition member to join the party, were untrue. Over the past month, Thai politicians had been gossiping that the party has been allegedly syphoning cash from the 1.9 trillion baht “coronavirus relief fund” to recruit parliamentarians…
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Over 100 arrested for illegal motorcycle night racing in Nonthaburi
Over 100 teens and adults have been arrested for involvement in illegal night motorcycle racing in Nonthaburi, just north of Bangkok city, since yesterday. Those arrested include riders, passengers, and supporters of the illegal races. Nonthaburi police said today that 102 people have been arrested in a collaborative effort between 11 police stations in the province. The operation is in…
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UPDATE: Kidnap/murder suspect Banyin in suicide bid
UPDATE: According to Thai PBS World, former deputy commerce minister Banyin Tangphaporn tried to commit suicide at a maximum security prison last night, after prison officials uncovered alleged plots to kidnap the wife of the prison warden to hold hostage in return for his release, and to escape while being taken to the court on Monday, if that plan failed.…
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Bangkok’s Skypark could inspire more green areas across the region
“It is an example of how to repurpose an abandoned structure and increase green spaces in Bangkok through cost-effective design.” Bangkok’s new “Skypark,” built on an abandoned, never-completed Skytrain track, could become be a model for turning the capital’s unused spaces into much-needed green areas. Such an initiative would also boost public health and mitigate the impacts of climate change,…
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Koh Samet will reopen next month
The eastern Rayong province’s Koh Samet will reopen to the public on July 1, after being closed since the enactment of the Emergency Decree to halt the spread of Covid-19. The reopening follows with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s policy to reopen all national parks nationwide. Koh Samet is a part of the Khao Laemya – Koh Samet…
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Covid-19 update: 1 new imported case (June 20)
The Ministry of Public Health’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 1 new confirmed case of Covid-19 this morning. The new case is an imported case, by a student returning from from Bharain. The student is in state quarantine and has had no contact with the general population since returning. Today is the 26th day in a row with no…
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Korat restauranteur will change your perception of airline food
An entrepreneur in Isaan’s Nakhon Ratchasima province is transforming an old Airbus A330 jetliner (formerly flying with Thai Airways) into a restaurant, hoping his new business will take off after months of being ‘grounded’ by lockdown restrictions enforced by the Thai government. 33 year old Sirikorn Phimparat, manager of Airways Land, says the aircraft is now being refurbished as a…
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Finance ministry to consider incentives to stimulate shopping, retail sector
Thailand’s finance minister says his ministry is ready to consider retailers’ proposals for tax breaks on shopping to stimulate domestic spending. The ministry has assigned related agencies, including the Fiscal Policy Office, the Revenue Department and the Excise Department, to examine the possibilities, Uttama Savanayana said yesterday. His remarks come after retailers asked the government to apply a shopping tax break…
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Pattaya soi dog, caught in fence, rescued
In a heartwarming story, a stray dog was rescued after it got stuck in a fence at a house in Pattaya earlier this week. Sawang Boriboon Rescue workers were notified of the unfortunate animal’s plight at a house in Naklua Thursday afternoon. Rescue workers and The Pattaya News arrived on the scene to find the dog stuck in the fence,…
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