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Thailand hot news, breaking stories, crime, politics, tourism, and business—stay updated with in-depth reports and exclusive interviews on the latest events across the country. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Thailand news source.

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    What do you need before moving from the US to Thailand?

    The Thaiger key takeaways The most common medical emergencies for expats in Thailand include motorcycle accidents, tropical diseases, and food or water-borne illnesses. Air pollution and heat-related conditions like heatstroke also pose serious seasonal health risks, especially in northern and...

  • Another Indian tourist reported gold necklace stolen in Pattaya | Thaiger

    Another Indian tourist reported gold necklace stolen in Pattaya

    In what has become an all-too-familiar story, Pattaya Police announced that an Indian tourist reported that a transgender woman stole his 30,000 baht gold necklace. The theft is the latest in a rash of gold necklace thefts being reported by Indian tourists in Pattaya, and occasionally Phuket. The victim this time was a 43 year old Indian man who says…

  • Thai opposition calls out Prayut over military spending | Thaiger

    Thai opposition calls out Prayut over military spending

    A leader of Thailand’s opposition has called out PM Prayut Chan-o-cha over military spending. The deputy leader of the Pheu Thai Party, Yuttapong Charasathien, criticised the government’s plans to purchase submarines and F-35 fighter jets. He said that Prayut should have scrapped a submarine deal when it became obvious that the Chinese manufacturer, China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Co, couldn’t…

  • Justice Minister insists Thailand winning the war against drugs | Thaiger

    Justice Minister insists Thailand winning the war against drugs

    The Justice Minister, Somsak Thepsutin, insists the government is winning the war against drugs in Thailand because of the kingdom’s strict laws, despite opposition saying it is worse and out of control. Pheu Thai Party MP Manaporn Charoensri yesterday blamed the government at the censure motion for failing to control the drug situation in Thailand. The MP said drugs were…

  • Thai police seize 200kg of smuggled cannabis but don’t know if it’s illegal | Thaiger

    Thai police seize 200kg of smuggled cannabis but don’t know if it’s illegal

    On Tuesday, police seized a huge amount of cannabis – 203 kilograms – which was smuggled into Thailand from Laos. Police arrested three Thai men in Bueng Kan province in northeast Thailand who picked up the cannabis on the border. Police don’t know what kind of punishment the men will be given, seeing as this is the first case of…

  • Magnanimous governor accepts blame for Bangkok’s floods | Thaiger

    Magnanimous governor accepts blame for Bangkok’s floods

    It makes a refreshing change to hear a politician or a man in authority accept the blame for something which isn’t necessarily his fault. The rest of the world should sit up, listen, and take a leaf out of Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt’s book! The magnanimous 56 year old city chief absolved previous Bangkok governors and accepted the blame for…

  • Professor says Bangkok floods could escalate in September-October | Thaiger

    Professor says Bangkok floods could escalate in September-October

    One university professor is warning that Bangkok may not have seen the worst of its floods this year. The professor, Dr Seree Supratid, is the director of the Climate Change and Disaster Centre at Rangsit University. Seree said that Bangkok’s flooding could be worse in September and October due to high tides and water runoffs from the northern region during…

  • Ex Thai military man shoots his mother in law after drunken row | Thaiger

    Ex Thai military man shoots his mother in law after drunken row

    A former military man shot his mother in law in a drunken rage last night after a row with a next door neighbour. Chaluay Karnjiakjorn, a former paramilitary officer from a Volunteer Defense Corpse, stole an M16 rifle and fired randomly at houses in the Nong Chang district of the central province of Uthai Thani. His 78 year old mother-in-law…

  • Sri Lanka’s military raids protest camp outside president’s office | Thaiger

    Sri Lanka’s military raids protest camp outside president’s office

    Ever since Sri Lanka descended into chaos, protesters have been camping outside of the presidential office in Colombo. But police and military aren’t having it, and today, they pulled down tents and arrested protesters. A police spokesperson confirmed that nine men were arrested, and would appear in court today. Following the raid, the area around the office has been calm,…

  • Thai tourism ministry to get 2 billion baht ‘booster shot’ | Thaiger

    Thai tourism ministry to get 2 billion baht ‘booster shot’

    The Tourism and Sports Minister, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, yesterday revealed his department expects to get a 2 billion baht “booster shot budget” to push Thai tourism this year after complaining to the prime minister. Phiphat revealed he approached PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and asked for the extra cash after being ignored by the man in charge of allocating additional funds, the Director…

  • Bangkok restaurant ranked 39th best in the world | Thaiger

    Bangkok restaurant ranked 39th best in the world

    A restaurant in Bangkok has been ranked 39th in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2022. The restaurant, Sorn, has won two Michelin stars. A hotspot for fine dining, Sorn serves traditional southern Thai cuisine. Sorn’s head chef, known as ‘Chef Ice,’ received the award at a ceremony in London earlier this week. Chef Ice expressed his honour over winning the…

  • Wednesday’s record rains in Bangkok cripple the centre of the city | Thaiger

    Wednesday’s record rains in Bangkok cripple the centre of the city

    Wednesday night’s downpour wasn’t just torrential, it was record-breaking! It was the highest rainfall recorded in 67 years in some areas of the centre of the Thai capital. Even the 20 baht convenience store raincoats were no match for the downpour. Rainfall measured at the Queen Sirikit Convention Centre in Khlong Toei district on Wednesday night was 132.5mm, surpassing the…

  • 6.4 earthquake strikes Myanmar and northern Thailand, 47 tremors so far | Thaiger

    6.4 earthquake strikes Myanmar and northern Thailand, 47 tremors so far

    A series of earthquakes struck Myanmar’s Shan State and Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand last night and throughout the early hours of this morning. The earthquakes began at around 11.30pm yesterday and as of 7am, a total of 47 tremors ranging in magnitude from 2.4 to 6.4 on the Richter scale had occurred. More earthquakes are expected today, according…

  • Indian tourists are picking up Phuket’s Old Town economy | Thaiger

    Indian tourists are picking up Phuket’s Old Town economy

    Phuket’s recovering tourism economy is picking up again thanks to Indian tourists. Indians have been the biggest tourist group in Phuket, and Thailand overall this year. Since May 1, over 72,000 Indian tourists have visited Phuket, according to the president of Phuket Old Town Tourism Community, Somyot Pathan. Phuket’s ‘Old Town’ in the main city district is a particular hotspot…

  • Thai mother turns blind eye as daughter raped by stepfather | Thaiger

    Thai mother turns blind eye as daughter raped by stepfather

    An alleged pedophile offered the father of a 12 year old girl he raped 100,000 baht in cash to buy his silence. The father refused. The rapist was in fact the teenage girl’s 59 year old stepfather and lived with the child’s birth mother who ignored the abuse. The girl said her mother knew everything but asked her not to…

  • Oldest giant male panda on earth dies in Hong Kong | Thaiger

    Oldest giant male panda on earth dies in Hong Kong

    Wildlife lovers have a reason to mourn, now that the oldest giant male panda on earth has died today in Hong Kong. The panda, named An An, was 35 years old when he passed away today at Ocean Park. The giant panda believed to have lived the longest was a female panda who died at 38 years old in 2016.…

  • Alleged gold necklace thief on the loose in Phuket | Thaiger

    Alleged gold necklace thief on the loose in Phuket

    It turns out Pattaya isn’t the only spot in Thailand where thieves snatch pricey gold necklaces. One woman in Phuket says a thief on a motorbike grabbed her gold necklace worth about 35,000 baht last night. The victim, 25 year old Kawissara, said she was also driving her motorbike when the thief drove by and snatched her necklace off her…

  • Thaksin hints he lives rent free inside Thailand PM Prayut’s head | Thaiger

    Thaksin hints he lives rent free inside Thailand PM Prayut’s head

    Exiled Thaksin Shinawatra poked fun at Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha hinting he is living rent free inside the Thai premier’s head. The former Thailand PM took a humorous swipe at the current prime minister on a social media platform saying he is “obsessed” with him after PM Prayut mentioned Thaksin on the first day of the censure debate on Tuesday.…

  • A bad egg: Pattaya’s egg thief scrambles | Thaiger

    A bad egg: Pattaya’s egg thief scrambles

    Pattaya and Chon Buri have had a variety of bizarre thieves: underwear burglars, cactus robbers, and now, an egg thief. In the past week, two egg merchants in Pattaya have complained that thieves stole their eggs. One of the merchants, who was robbed on July 19, said the eggs stolen from her were worth over 8,600 baht. The merchant, 40…

  • British Airways flights to Thailand suspended until 2023 | Thaiger

    British Airways flights to Thailand suspended until 2023

    British Airways isn’t heading back to Bangkok until at least next year. Tour operators were hoping the British flagship carrier would be adding regular flights again between Heathrow and Bangkok in time for Thailand’s high season, just when the winter kicks in in the UK. British Airways was originally set to resume flights in November this year but has now…

  • Nok Air to make Chiang Mai a new global destination hub | Thaiger

    Nok Air to make Chiang Mai a new global destination hub

    Nok Air announced it is turning Chaing Mai International Airport, in the northern province of Chaing Mai, into a new hub of domestic and global routes. The airline yesterday invited Chaing Mai Governor, Wuttiphum Julangkun, and the media to a press conference at Chiang Mai City Hall, at the Chang Phueak in the Mueng Chiang Mai District, to discuss the…

  • Thailand admits using surveillance to spy on democracy activists | Thaiger

    Thailand admits using surveillance to spy on democracy activists

    Less than a day after police denied using the Israeli-made Pegasus spyware to track Thai democracy activists a government minister admitted Thailand does use surveillance to monitor individuals. Successive Thai governments have been accused by Human rights groups of using broad definitions of national security as a pretext to prosecute or suppress the activities of their main rivals. And on…

  • Heavy rains cause disruption around Thailand, Bangkok commuters deluged | Thaiger

    Heavy rains cause disruption around Thailand, Bangkok commuters deluged

    Yes, it is the wet season. And, just in case you doubted it, Mother Nature has thrown down the rain in buckets to make sure you don’t forget, including Bangkok overnight. The Thai Meteorological Department has issued warnings of “isolated heavy to very heavy rain in most parts of the country” up to July 24. Some parts of the country,…

  • Four year old witness helps police catch gamblers in central Thailand | Thaiger

    Four year old witness helps police catch gamblers in central Thailand

    Police could not contain their laughter during an interview with a four year old witness to a crime in central Thailand yesterday. The innocent child gave police important information about a group of gamblers, including his parents, during a raid at a house in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province in central Thailand. Yesterday, police received a complaint that a group…

  • Thailand’s Zipmex crypto exchange blocks transfers and withdrawals | Thaiger

    Thailand’s Zipmex crypto exchange blocks transfers and withdrawals

    Another cryptocurrency exchange is in trouble, blocking withdrawals of both cash and crypto from its platform as go 6pm last night. Zipmex Thailand, a crypto-trading platform, has announced that the withdrawal of baht and cryptocurrency on its platform “has been suspended temporarily”. In the announcement, the CEO outlined a number of difficulties and challenges facing the Thai crypto exchange. He…

  • Phuket residents welcome the new ‘Khao Daeng Glass Bridge’ to be built in Rawai | Thaiger

    Phuket residents welcome the new ‘Khao Daeng Glass Bridge’ to be built in Rawai

    A community meeting in Rawai on Tuesday agreed to get behind the latest tourist attraction, the Khao Daeng Glass Bridge, a new viewpoint and tourism focus for the quieter south of the island. President of Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation, Rewat Areerob, presented details about the new attraction and said it was good to have the Rawai community backing the project.…

  • Investigation begins into Thailand’s latest maritime incident off Chumpon | Thaiger

    Investigation begins into Thailand’s latest maritime incident off Chumpon

    Thailand has logged another maritime mishap with the fire on a passenger ferry, about 5 kilometres off the coast of Chumpon. The sea conditions were reported as “rough” at the time of the incident off the uninhabited Koh Thong Lang. This time 20 people were on board, but the 18 passengers jumped into the water and were all rescued. A…

  • UPDATE: Poisonous gas another cause of death in Bangkok sewer tragedy | Thaiger

    UPDATE: Poisonous gas another cause of death in Bangkok sewer tragedy

    UPDATE Another worker from the Bangkok sewer tragedy died in hospital this afternoon. Officials said the cause of death could be a combination of electrocution, a lack of air, and poisonous gas in the sewer. In total, three electrical workers died, 26 year old Thosapol Faksawat, 23 year old Warawut U-Nath, and 37 year old Direk Intarangsee who lost his…

  • US upgrades Thailand to Tier 2 in human trafficking report, but… | Thaiger

    US upgrades Thailand to Tier 2 in human trafficking report, but…

    The US has promoted Thailand from the “Tier 2 Watch List” up to “Tier 2” in their annual Trafficking In Persons (TIP) Report, as confidently predicted by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan back in May. However, Thailand still has a long way to go, according to the report. The report praised Thailand’s “significant efforts” to eliminate human trafficking, which include…

  • 18 passengers rescued after ferry explodes off South Thailand coast | Thaiger

    18 passengers rescued after ferry explodes off South Thailand coast

    Eighteen people were rescued after a ferry exploded on its way from Chumpon to Koh Tao today at about 2.30pm. All 18 passengers suffered injuries. The ferry, named Lom Phraya, caught fire about 4-5 kilometres off the coast of the Haad Sai Ree sub-district, Mueng district in Chumpon province in the south of Thailand. The rescue team reported on its…

  • Thailand’s heavy rain is coming back | Thaiger

    Thailand’s heavy rain is coming back

    After a brief break, Thailand’s heavy rain is coming back with a vengeance for the rest of this week. The Thai Meteorological Department said there should be heavy to very heavy rain throughout most of the kingdom from today, July 20, until Sunday, July 24. This includes the North, Northeast, Central, East, and South regions. Those living near the coast…