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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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Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
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Watchdogs call for investigation into ties between Myanmar arms broker and junta leader
Watchdog groups are calling for an investigation into the relationship between an arrested Burmese businessman in Thailand and Myanmar’s junta leader. The campaign group Justice for Myanmar, and other similar groups, are calling for a probe into their ties and to block their access to Thailand’s financial system. The calls come after arms broker Tun Min Latt, 53, and three…
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Indian flight departs with 55 passengers left on bus
Every flight passenger hates being packed into a busy terminal transport bus from the gate to the stairs before climbing onto their aeroplane. But on Monday morning 55 passengers crammed onto a bus and sat there for an hour while their flight forgot about them and took off. The incident took place in India on a flight operated by budget…
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Thailand enacts law to prevent recidivism among sexual and violent offenders
Thailand will implement a law later this month that aims at preventing recidivism among prisoners put away for violent or sexual offences after their release from prison. Yesterday, government spokesperson Ratchada Thanadirek said in a Cabinet meeting that the Measures to Prevent Recidivism of Sexual and Violent Crimes Act (2022) will come into force on January 23. The new act requires…
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Govt to introduce 300 baht tourist fee in June
The government announced plans to introduce its long-mooted 300 baht tourist fee for foreign visitors in June. The tourism fee was originally planned to be imposed on foreign travellers at the beginning of last year but the idea was put on hold after the spread of the Covid-19 Omicron variant and details of how the government planned to collect the…
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MOPH to open vaccination centre for foreigners
The Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) plans to offer Covid-19 vaccines for foreigners at Bang Rak Medical Centre in Bangkok for about 1,000 baht. The Minister of Tourism and Sports, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn announced on Wednesday, December 28 that he planned to give free booster shots to foreigners but added it would need Cabinet approval in January. The proposal was seen…
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New Zealand district in state of local emergency dealing with ex-cyclone Hale’s wrath
A New Zealand district is under a state of local emergency after ex-cyclone Hale’s wrath pushed a major river toward breaching its banks. The Tairāwhiti Civil Defence declared the emergency as the Hikuwai River has reached a height of 12.5 metres yesterday. It was expected to reach 13 metres by midnight yesterday. Families are self-evacuating due to the risk of…
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Bangkok’s controversial Bang Sue Grand Station name change on hold
Bangkok’s controversial Bang Sue Grand Station name change is on hold after it received heavy backlash for its US$1 million price tag. When His Majesty the King renamed Bang Sue Grand Station, “Krung Thep Abhiwat Central Terminal,” in September, some questioned the need to spend such an amount in taxpayers’ money. Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Transport Minister Saksayam…
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Thailand to track cannabis users in government database
Thai nationals will soon be required to show their ID cards when purchasing cannabis flowers. The ID and sales information will be entered into a government database, according to the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (DTAM). Registered vendors will be required to insert the buyers’ ID into a “device” linked with the government system and input information regarding…
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German tourist falls near summit of Tiger Cave Temple in southern Thailand
A young German tourist is injured after falling from the top of the stairs at Tiger Cave Temple in Krabi province in southern Thailand yesterday afternoon. At 3pm, Krabi Tourist Police were informed that a German tourist needed medical help after an accident near the summit of the mountain. Rescue workers climbed over 1,000 steps, which took more than one…
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Cops bust thieving couple who sold items to second hand shops in Phuket
Cops busted a thieving couple in Phuket on Monday, a husband and wife team who stole items and sold them to second hand shops. Police say the husband has been identified as Banjerd, and the wife as Toon Mathurasorn, The Phuket News reported. A Russian man, Oliver Thurman, alerted Wichit Police on January 6 that a towing rig and a…
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Cabinet announces change to holiday calendar
The government yesterday announced a change to the Thai holiday calendar. Government spokesperson Traisuree Taisaranakul revealed the Cabinet has declared Friday, May 5, a special holiday, making it a four-day holiday for Coronation Day. The Cabinet agreed to change the date because this year’s Coronation Day falls on a Thursday, reported Bangkok Post. “The long holiday for Coronation Day will…
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Thai police seize 30 kilograms of heroin bound for Hong Kong hidden in puppy pads
Thai authorities seized a sizeable 30 kilograms of heroin yesterday in Samut Prakan province, just north of Bangkok, believed to be headed to Hong Kong. Police arrested a Hong Konger and a Thai national during the raid. Officers from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) raided a house in the Kanchanaphisek 39 area of Samut Prakan to find…
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Daily direct flights between Phuket and Shanghai to takeoff next week
Daily flights between Phuket in southern Thailand and Shanghai in China will takeoff next Wednesday, January 18, operated by Shanghai’s Juneyao Airlines. The inaugural flight will be the first direct service between Phuket and mainland China in almost three years. China reopened its borders yesterday, and given that China was once Thailand’s top tourism market, Thailand braced itself for an…
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2 Thai women attacked by foreign mafia in Koh Samui
A Thai woman sought help from the Thai media after she and her mother were attacked by some foreigners who claimed to be part of a mafia gang at a bar in Koh Samui on New Year’s Eve. The woman turned to the media because the police ignored her case. The local Facebook page Samui Fresh News posted a video…
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Police on the prowl for scam gang after Thai teen commits suicide
Police are on the prowl for a scamming gang after a teenage boy committed suicide in Thailand’s central Nonthaburi province. The boy, 15 year old Arthit, hung himself in a wooded area in the Pakkret district on Sunday. Arthit left a note apologising to his mother for stealing up to 15,000 baht from her purse. Investigators later found that criminals…
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Biodegradable tax incentives to reduce plastic waste
Thailand is taking a big step to tackle plastic waste, and it’s all about incentives. The country’s Ministry of Finance has teamed up with the Ministry of Industry to announce a new program that offers a 25% corporate income tax reduction for businesses that buy biodegradable plastic products between 2022 and 2024. This move is aimed at encouraging companies to…
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Piracy in decline around the world
The Covid-19 pandemic has been rough on everyone. But as we focus on rebuilding tourism and the economy, spare a moment in your thoughts for Jack Sparrow. A new report says that last year worldwide pirate activity was at its lowest since 2008, and possibly since 1992. Piracy and robbery on the high seas are at their lowest levels since…
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Immigration police arrest two Chinese fraudsters illegally living in Thailand
In two separate but similar cases, Immigration Police arrested two Chinese fraudsters posing as businessmen and illegally living in Thailand. Collectively, the pair scammed victims of over 2 billion baht. Case 1 Police arrested a 44 year old Chinese national named Changguan (pseudonym) who allegedly scammed hundreds of victims of over 1.4 billion baht by persuading them to invest in…
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Soapy king makes PM Prayut’s inauguration slippy
Former soapy king turned amateur super-sleuth Chuwit Kamolvisit tried to gatecrash Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s inauguration into United Thai Nation (UTN) Party yesterday. PM Prayut officially joined the UTN Party yesterday where he gave an impassioned speech on how he values the democratisation process, seemingly forgetting that he toppled the democratic process when seizing power in a 2014 army coup.…
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Bangkok City Hall assesses Covid readiness
With travel increases to Thailand, and with the reopening of China, comes the risk of spreading Covid-19. Bangkok City Hall is taking steps to ensure that visitors can enjoy their stay while keeping themselves and others safe as they brace for an influx of tourists. Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt tasked his deputy governors with conducting a full assessment of the…
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Police close unlicensed cannabis stalls in Pattaya
Pattaya Police swooped on unsuspecting cannabis stalls operating without a license in the Bang Lamung District at the weekend and closed them down. Officers closed five unlicensed cannabis shops, and arrested one man, after inspecting hundreds of stalls in Pattaya over the weekend, reported Pattaya Mail. Pattaya Police chief Pol. Col. Kullachart Kullachai and Dr Thongchai Lertwilairattanapong, director-general of the…
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Two 10 year old schoolchildren killed after reckless sedan crashes into school bus
Two 10 year old schoolchildren were killed and another 19 were injured after a reckless sedan driver crashed into a school bus. The smash caused a collision between a school bus and a minibus on a road in the northern province of Phichit. The incident happened on the Phichit-Saklek Road in the Mueang district of Phichit at 5.30pm yesterday, January…
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Marine department warns boats after trawler sinks in South Thailand
Large waves are continuing to wreak havoc on boats in Thailand’s waters. The country’s Marine Department warned boat operators to be extra cautious after a fishing trawler sank in South Thailand on Saturday night. The trawler sank in the Gulf of Thailand about 18.2 nautical miles off the coast of Pak Phanang district in Nakhon Si Thammarat province. Fortunately, marine…
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British man claims he was tortured by Thai police
A British man claims he was tortured by Thai police for seven days straight in Phuket, southern Thailand when his holiday abroad went gravely wrong. British authorities have launched an investigation into the alleged abuse, reports FirstPost. He allegedly sustained broken ribs, bruised limbs, septic infections, swollen wrists, and lost four teeth in the ordeal. The victim, 51 year old Carl…
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Tourism Authority of Thailand plans first roadshow in China after pandemic
Now that China has lifted travel restrictions for its citizens, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is once again tapping into the Chinese tourism market. TAT is planning a roadshow in China during the third week of February. This will be the first roadshow after the Covid-19 pandemic, according to TAT’s Regional Director of East Asia Chuwit Sirivejkul. The roadshow…
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Thai island holds first Full Moon party of the year, draws 20,000 tourists
Thailand’s island of Koh Pha Ngan welcomed its first Full Moon party of the year on Friday night, drawing 20,000 tourists, according to Surat Thani’s vice governor. The party experienced a bit of rain, but after the rain cleared, tourists were able to have a blast dancing on the beach. Vice Governor Choosak Rooying told The Phuket Express that so…
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2 Russian men report money missing from safe in Pattaya hotel
Two Russian men filed complaints with the police after nearly 140,000 baht disappeared from safety boxes in a hotel in Pattaya. Investigating officers reported there is no traces of the thief because the hotel’s CCTV cameras were all broken. The two Russian men, Natalina Chernova and Oleg Gipke, filed a complaint at Mueng Pattaya Police Station on Saturday, January 7…
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Thailand’s Miss Universe 2022 contestant denies bias claims
Thailand’s Miss Universe 2022 contestant denied claims that new ownership of the brand would give her an unfair advantage. Anna Sueangam-iam, 24, laughed off the suggestion during an interview in the US with pageant analyst Brian Javier on Sunday. Anna is currently competing in New Orleans, where the 71st Miss Universe pageant will be held on Sunday, January 15. Asked…
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Bomb threat against Jetstar flight in Japan (video)
A caller who appeared to be based in Germany made a bomb threat against a Jetstar flight in Japan on Saturday. The suspect called Narita Airport on Saturday morning in Japan time and said in English that he had planted a bomb on Jetstar Flight 501, according to the airline operator. The flight was headed to Fukuoka from Narita. Jetstar…
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Thailand U-turns on Covid-19 vaccine entry requirement
Just days after Thailand reintroduced the two-dose Covid-19 vaccine entry requirement, Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul says the requirement will be dropped with immediate effect. However, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has informed airlines globally that unvaccinated tourists must provide either proof of recovery from Covid in the past six months or a doctor’s note explaining why they are…
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