Hot News
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Sponsored This Christmas, give the gift of health: essential options for expats in Thailand
The holiday season is here, bringing warmth, joy, and a chance to reflect on the year gone by. As an expat in Thailand, this Christmas is a great time to invest in something that truly matters: health. Whether for you...
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Phuket’s tuna industry falling behind, Phuket VP calls to train fishermen
In a meeting yesterday, Phuket’s Vice Governor Pichet said the provincial government wants fishermen to develop stronger skills with tuna and tuna fishing practices. He said strict fishing laws have already lowered the number of tuna caught in the province. Another issue is that Thailand doesn’t have proper tuna fishing boats. VP Pichet said amendments to current laws on which…
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Bangkok criminal court won’t let activist study on scholarship in Germany
A student activist facing lèse majesté charges won’t be allowed to study in Germany with a scholarship for a post-graduate program. Ravisara, nicknamed Dear, was charged when she read a statement in German in front of the German Embassy in Bangkok in 2020. When Dear applied to leave the country for a prestigious scholarship program, The Bangkok South Criminal Court…
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Woman arrested on charges of trafficking to UAE, one of six suspects
Police in Chachoengsao, a province east of Bangkok, arrested a woman suspected of tricking another woman into working as a prostitute in the United Arab Emirates. She is one of six suspects in the case. The alleged victim told authorities she was invited to work as a masseuse at a spa in Dubai. The woman who invited her was called…
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Woman allegedly stabs husband’s penis with a harpoon after heated argument
A woman allegedly stabbed her husband’s penis with a harpoon after a heated argument. Thai media reports that the woman stabbed him in his genitals and twisted the spear, just like “catching a fish.” The man drove a motorbike to his mother’s house and went to the hospital the next day where he got more than 17 stitches. Thai reporters…
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Court acquits final 3 accused in zero-dollar tourism case, citing insufficient evidence
The final 3 defendants in a zero-dollar tourism scam exposed in 2016 were acquitted by the Thai Supreme Court yesterday. The court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove the case against the 3. The zero-dollar tourism scam involved cheap package tours for Chinese tourists, who would be accommodated in cheap hotels, and taken to certain restaurants and on…
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TAT launches “Holideals” travel promotions with digital tokens as payment
In a new marketing campaign by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, people will be able to use digital tokens to buy travel packages and vouchers. The “Thailand Holideals” offers packages and vouchers for hotels, restaurants, spas, and for recreational activities. This is the first time the Thai travel industry has allowed travellers pay using digital tokens. The Deputy Manager of…
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Much of Australian state under water as 200,000 people ordered to flee flood
A devastating storm that started last week has killed 13 people so far in the Australian state of New South Wales. Emergency services have ordered 200,000 people to flee, warning of dangerous wind and rain across 400 kilometres of the coast. A meteorologist predicts there will be 50-150 milimetres of rain in and around Sydney, which he warned will cause…
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Sandwich seller in Isaan arrested for smuggling amphetamine from Laos
The sandwich seller in northeastern province Roi Et was arrested for allegedly smuggling illicit drugs. Police found more than 70,000 amphetamine pills at her home. The 47 year old woman allegedly admitted to the charges, saying selling sandwiches couldn’t cover her family’s expenses and she needed the additional income. Officers from Mueng Roi Et Police Station received a tip that…
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Elephant carcass missing ivory tusks found at Songkhla national park
The remains of an elephant missing its ivory tusks were found by national park authorities at a mountain in the southern province Songkhla. Officials suspect the elephant was killed by those involved in the illegal ivory trade. Locals found the bones of the elephant on a mountain in the Pa Kabang Reserved Forest in the province’s Sabayoi district. National park…
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Phuket international school petitions against slaughterhouse being built nearby
On Tuesday, administrators from an international school in Phuket submitted a petition to the province’s governor against a slaughterhouse being built within 400 metres of the school. The administrators claimed construction of the slaughterhouse would have “long term environmental effects” on people in the area. The slaughterhouse is planned to be 300-400 metres from the school. A report by Phuket’s…
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BREAKING: Tangmo’s cause of death revealed, 5 boat buddies face charges
BREAKING: Police are considering whether to charge all five of Tangmo’s boat companions with negligence leading to death and making false statements, the Bangkok Post reported. After the actress fell into the river and drowned, one of the men on the speedboat phoned some influential friends to seek advice, according to phone conversation records obtained by the Provincial Police Region…
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Thai police raid home suspected of running illegal Korean gambling site
Thai police raided a home suspected of being the headquarters for an illegal gambling website that swindled more than 100 million baht from Korean victims. Officers arrested four South Korean men and a Thai woman who was renting the home in Samut Prakan, just southeast of Bangkok. The suspects face charges of organising, advertising, and inviting people to join gambling without…
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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…
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Renewed calls to ditch Thailand Pass and PCR test on arrival
Key figures in Thailand’s tourism industry have renewed their calls for the Thailand Pass and PCR testing on arrival to be scrapped. The sector is now concerned about the potential impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on future tourism numbers. According to a Bangkok Post report, hoteliers now say they fear the invasion could see international arrivals dropping to 10%…
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Phuket prisoner who escaped put back in jail
On Monday night, prison wardens recaptured a prisoner who escaped Phuket Provincial Prison. The Phuket News didn’t specify when the man was first imprisoned or when he escaped, but reported that he was in remand pending trial for robbery. After he was found at a friend’s house, he was taken back into custody yesterday. The man is identified as Jamnien…
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Thai couple arrested for allegedly running fake travel agency advertising trips in Krabi
A couple was arrested in Bangkok for allegedly running a fake travel agency advertising tour packages in the southern province Krabi off the Andaman coast. Reports say the couple had been doing the scam for seven years, scamming tourists out of a total of 100 million baht. Tour packages with accommodation included were advertised on Facebook for costing 2,500 baht…
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Thai officials warn prisons over forced fishing net labour
Following a December investigation by Thomson Reuters Foundation about abuse of Thai prisoners forced to make fishing nets, officials are warning prisons. The investigation found that prison guards beat prisoners who didn’t meet certain targets, and disallowed them to shower. Prisoners were also not paid minimum wage, and sometimes not paid at all. In February, 31 Thai and international rights…
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Thais can now work in Saudi Arabia
As of yesterday, Thai workers can now work in Saudi Arabia, and will be protected by Saudi laws. Thailand’s cabinet approved two draft agreements about this yesterday, which will last for five years. They will be extended for another five years unless one or both parties decide against it. Both countries will cooperate to make sure recruitment and employment is…
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National park officers rescue 5 German tourists lost in Koh Phang Ngan forest
Officers from the Than Sadet National Park on Koh Phang Ngan have rescued a group of 5 German tourists after they got lost yesterday while on a forest hike. The 4 women and 1 man had been doing the Khao Ra hike, which takes in the highest peak on the island, when heavy rainfall caused them to get lost. A…
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Tourism authorities greet first Saudi direct arrivals, plan new schemes
The Tourism Authority of Thailand greeted Saudi tourist arrivals with traditional Thai performances and a water salute on Monday. The flight was the first direct flight to Thailand from Saudi Arabia in 32 years landed in Bangkok, at Suvarnabhumi Airport. This flight symbolised the recent reconciliation between Thailand and Saudi Arabia after decades of frosty relations following the Blue Diamond…
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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…
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Human rights lawyer Anon Nampa granted 3-month conditional bail
Political activist and human rights lawyer, Anon Nampa, has been granted bail by the Bangkok South Criminal Court. The Ratsadon pro-democracy group leader has been in custody for over 200 days, on charges of lèse majesté and other charges related to political protests. His temporary release was tweeted by Norasate Nanongtoom of Thai Lawyers for Human Rights. According to Norasate,…
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UPDATE: What really happened to Tangmo? All we know (and the stuff we don’t)
What really happened to Thailand’s Nida Patcharaveerapong, known lovingly by her fans as “Tangmo” (pronounced Daeng-moo) or “Watermelon,” who died last Thursday night after reportedly “falling” from a speedboat into the Chao Phraya River? The Thai TV actress had starred in countless dramas and advertisements in her nearly 20 year career, living in the limelight since childhood. In 2007, a…
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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…
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Drunk driver crashes into motorbike, killing woman and 9 month old
A 60 year old woman and her nine month old grandson died after their motorbike was slammed from behind by a pickup truck early Sunday night in Samut Prakan, southeast of Bangkok. The 35 year old mother survived. She told the police she was riding her motorbike home with her nine month old son and mother. Her motorbike was hit…
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Family works to appeal South African’s sentencing in Koh Samui drug trafficking case
The family of the young South African woman incarcerated at Thai prison for accepting a package of drugs have been working on an appeal. 22 year old Ashley Oosthuizen was sentenced to life in prison after she accepted a package of MDMA at the Koh Samui restaurant Hot in the Biscuit in late-2020. Her mother, Lynn Blignaut, told The Thaiger…
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Thailand expecting a million Middle Eastern tourists following restoration of Saudi ties
Thailand hopes to restore its battered tourism sector by welcoming around a million Middle Eastern tourists by the end of this year. Government spokesperson Traisulee Traisornkul says the restoration of ties with Saudi Arabia, after a 30-year freeze, will help revive the tourism industry in the kingdom. “Restoring relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia would play a crucial role in…
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Southern houses damaged by rainstorms and sea waves
Rainstorms and big sea waves damaged about 200 homes in the Southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat between Thursday and this morning. The storms hit the Gulf of Thailand, and drastically eroded about 500 metres of the beach at Na Saton village. The deputy provincial governor inspected the damage this morning, and the Na Satorn Municipality gave people tiles and…
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Forensic experts uncover more about Tangmo’s death, two charged so far
Forensic experts have dismissed reports that Tangmo, the Thai actress who’s body was found yesterday, went to the back of the boat she fell off to urinate. The experts say she was wearing a body suit, which would have made this difficult. A preliminary autopsy showed Tangmo had sand in her lungs. Toxicology results are expected to take about seven…
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Bangkok student president dismissed for controversial video chat
The president of Chulalongkorn Univesity’s student council was dismissed from his position after he presented a controversial video at a student orientation in 2021. The video featured talks by two prominent protest leaders, nicknamed Penguin and Rung, who are known critics of Thailand’s monarchy. In his talk, Penguin raised his middle finger, and encouraged students to do the same. Thai…
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