Thailand News
Discover the most recent and relevant news from across Thailand on The Thaiger’s National News page. Covering a wide range of topics, including politics, business, crime, and lifestyle, our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
Stay informed about the latest developments in Thai society, economy, and culture, as well as updates on travel, tourism, and expat life. With The Thaiger, you’ll never miss out on the essential news that matters to you.
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Sponsored Working in Thailand: How expat health insurance protects your career and lifestyle
Starting a career in Thailand can be an exciting chapter, but it also brings unique challenges, especially when it comes to health and wellness. For expats, navigating Thailand’s healthcare system and meeting work permit requirements can be difficult. And while...
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Thailand Cabinet approves emergency decree to crackdown on Internet fraud
The Thailand Cabinet revealed its commitment to cracking down on Internet fraud by approving a draft emergency decree. Digital Economy and Society (DES) Minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn revealed the Cabinet approved the draft emergency decree to combat Internet fraud, which will allow financial institutions to temporarily halt suspicious transactions for scrutiny. The draft, titled “the prevention and suppression of technology crime,”…
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Tourist numbers up, positive Covid-19 tests down
Positive Covid-19 tests, hospitalisations and deaths dropped substantially in the third week of January. The much-needed return of tourists to the kingdom in substantial numbers has not produced the much-feared spike in Covid cases or deaths. All the metrics were down in the third week of January, with only a handful of foreigners testing positive. The Department of Disease Control…
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President of Thailand’s Udon Thani FC ‘Madam Wi’ accused of fraud
“Madam Wi,” the president of Thai League 2 team Udon Thani FC in northeast Thailand, has been accused of fraud after allegedly deceiving people into paying her money to find them work in South Korea. Nine people filed a complaint at Mueang Udon Thani Police Station accusing 41 year old Arisara “Madam Wi” Chamun of fraud and violating the Employment…
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Thai activists warn that new hair guidelines will allow schools to be more strict
A Thai student activist group warns that Thailand’s new guidelines for schools will allow schools to be stricter on students. This news comes after Education Minister Treenuch Thienthong signed an order cancelling the ministry’s 2020 regulation on student hairstyles on January 16. This week, Treenuch said she was preparing a guideline for schools on hairstyles. The draft guideline says that…
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Foreigner claims suspected Thai monk in sex clip is actually him
A Vietnamese man claims that it is he featured in a clip of two men having sex and not the accused famous Thai monk ‘Kru Ba Gai.’ Four former students of Kra Ba Gai, a well-known abbot of a temple in Khon Kaen province in northeast Thailand, accused the monk of having sexual relations with a man which is against the…
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Foreign tourist under investigation for free climbing in southern Thailand
A foreign tourist is under investigation for free climbing up a limestone cliff on an island off the coast of Krabi province in southern Thailand within national park boundaries. The Chief of Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, Teekhawut Sriburin, is investigating a foreign tourist and a Thai boat operator after photos of a foreigner climbing up a limestone…
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Thai navy rescues tourists caught in large Phuket waves
The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) rescued a group of tourists in distress who were caught in large waves on a fishing boat off Phuket. The RTN Third Area Command said they rescued the seven foreign tourists in the south of Phuket on Wednesday. The boat’s navigator was broken, leaving the captain unable to bring the boat back to the shore.…
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Thai founder of stray animal shelter featured on Hershey’s chocolate bar wrapper
A Thai woman who founded a shelter for stray animals and invested over 100 million baht in its care is featured on a Hershey’s chocolate bar wrapper to commemorate International Women’s Day on March 8. Hershey’s, one of the world’s biggest chocolate manufacturers, releases new chocolate bar wrappers to honour inspirational women on International Women’s Day. In recent years, the…
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Arrested drug dealer says he got narcotics from police
Police arrested a drug dealer and four addicts yesterday in the central province of Rayong. The dealer, while being arrested, alleged that the Thai police were involved in drug distribution and claimed that he had received the drugs as a reward for acting as a secret agent for the police in the province. The drug dealer and his four customers…
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Russian man found hanged in Phuket
A Russian man was found hanged in his rented room in Phuket yesterday. The man, 36 year old Roman Melnik, was found hanged by a strap attached to the balcony door behind his room in Rawai, The Phuket Express reported. Police said Melnik is believed to have died some 12 hours before his body was found. Chalong Police Captain Charat…
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Thai bride-to-be falls to death from Pattaya condo
A Thai bride-to-be fell to her death from a condominium in Pattaya in the early hours of this morning. Her friend told police that she and her foreign fiancé had just left her bar five minutes before she died. Mueang Pattaya Police Station officers and a rescue team were notified of the incident and rushed to the condo on Southern Pattaya…
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Drain collapses beneath Chinese tourist’s feet in Thailand
A Chinese tourist was walking on a pavement near the Ancient City in Samut Prakan near Bangkok yesterday when a drain cover collapsed beneath his feet. Luckily, the tourist only sustained minor injuries. The Facebook page ‘Samut Prakan News v2’ posted a photo of the distressed tourist sitting on the side of Sukhumvit Road next to a broken sewage drain…
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FTI warns foreign businesses will invest elsewhere unless govt makes energy cheaper
The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) warned the government that foreign businesses will not invest in Thailand if it maintains its unsustainable utility bills. The FTI insists investors will look to their more competitive Asian neighbours and set up camp there if the government does not make its energy cheaper. FTI Vice President Sompote Ahunai said the government needs to…
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Thailand to spend US$250 million on private VIP jets
The Cabinet approved an 8.8-billion-baht (US$270 million) budget to procure private VIP jets for members of the Thai royal family, ministers and honoured guests. Proposed by the prime minister’s secretariat and approved on Tuesday, the plan includes the procurement of new aircraft and components and the training of personnel. It’s just the latest of many curious budget decisions we can…
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Bolt vs Win motorbike taxi gang violence continues in Pattaya
Violence between rivalling motorbike taxi operators continues in Pattaya, eastern Thailand, where three ‘Win‘ drivers were injured after being beaten with a baseball bat and an iron bar, allegedly by Bolt drivers. Yesterday evening, a brawl broke out between three Bolt drivers and three Win drivers at Thappraya Soi 7, South Pattaya, Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri province, near Jomtien…
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Huge waves in the southern Thai sea destroys beach and 200 palm trees
Thap Sakae Beach and 200 palm trees in the southern province of Prachup Khiri Khan were devastated as huge waves battered its shoreline yesterday morning. According to Thap Sakae sub-district chief Maria Phaopratarn, the waves and wind at Thap Sakae Beach in the southern province of Prachup Khiri Khan were unusually strong yesterday morning and began to subside around 4pm.…
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Thai man mistakes friend for wild boar and shoots him dead
A Thai man shot dead his best friend in the forest in Lampang province in northern Thailand yesterday morning. Distraught, the gunman said he thought his friend was a wild boar. At 7am, officers from Mae Tha Police Station were informed of a fatal shooting in the forest on the mountain in Wan Ngern subdistrict. At the scene, officers found…
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Taiwanese actress warns tourists to be aware of Thailand’s ‘bastard police’
A famous Taiwanese actress warned foreign tourists coming to Thailand to be aware of the kingdom’s “bastard police!” The actress revealed on social media that the Royal Thai Police (RTP) extorted 27,000 baht from her and her friends on fake, trumped-up charges while they were travelling in Thailand at the beginning of this month. The Thai Facebook page Hello Taiwan!…
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Longtail boat sinks in Thailand: Pregnant Malay woman and child die, 2 survive
A longtail boat carrying a family of Malaysian tourists sank off the coast of Krabi province in southern Thailand yesterday. A 36 year old pregnant woman and her six year old child died while the father and Thai boat operator survived with the help of a local fisherman. A young fisherman, 21 year old Warit Changmin, went out fishing for…
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Bank of Thailand increases interest rates, again!
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of Thailand insists that it had to hike its policy interest rate by 0.25% to 1.50% yesterday for the fourth consecutive time to curb high inflation. MPC Committee Secretary Piti Disyatat reported that the committee was unanimous in its decision. “Under a gradual policy normalisation, rate hikes could take place for a…
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Thailand beats foreign arrivals goal for 2022
Thailand has reportedly beaten its goal for foreign arrivals in 2022 after seeing a total of 11.15 million tourists enter the country last year. Initially, the kingdom had set a goal for 10 million tourists to arrive in 2022. But, as the world opened up after the Covid-19 pandemic, the country saw a significant jump in arrivals compared to 2021’s…
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Bangkok, Songkhla, Chon Buri provinces to host 2025 Southeast Asian Games
Bangkok, Songkhla, and Chon Buri provinces are the new hosts of the 2025 Southeast Asian Games. The Sports Authority of Thailand decided at a meeting that was presided over by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon yesterday. During the meeting, Nakhon Ratchasima was also chosen to host the 13th ASEAN Para Games in 2026. A budget allocation from the National Sports…
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Thai police swiftly arrest thief who robbed German tourist
Netizens are praising the work of police in Sukhothai in central Thailand for tracking down and arresting a thief who robbed a German tourist in just 30 minutes and reuniting her with all of the stolen items. Not only did police crack the case, but one investigating officer interrogated the thief and posted the video on his TikTok account earlier today.…
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2 Chinese tourists injured after fight at bar in Chiang Mai
Two Chinese citizens were injured after two groups of Chinese tourists brawled at the end of a boxing match at a bar in Chiang Mai. The fight also caused a heavy backlog of traffic near Tha Phae Gate. Members of the Ruamlanna Chiang Mai Rescue Association rushed to the bar on Loi Kroh Road near Chiang Mai Old City after…
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Thai netizens predict lucky lottery numbers based on diamond eye cat
Thai netizens are predicting lucky lottery numbers based on an unusual cat with a diamond eye. TikTok clips that went viral today show the cat’s peculiar, piercingly bright left eye. Some netizens predicted lucky numbers for the February 1 lottery based on the TikTok user’s name, @user3026088746242. They have also predicted numbers associated with cats, mainly four, eight, and seven. Many…
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10,000 Bangkok taxis have adjusted meters to match recent rate hikes
Almost 10,000 Bangkok taxis have reportedly adjusted their meters to match recent rate hikes. The Department of Land Transport (DLT) made the announcement, saying that since Monday, January 16, taxis have been visiting the Krung Thep Aphiewat Central Terminal to have their metres adjusted. The taxi’s base fares have risen from 35 to 40 baht with drivers being required to…
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Leopard undergoes successful surgery in Thailand
Veterinarians successfully removed a large tumour from a leopard‘s face in Suphan Buri province in central Thailand yesterday. The big cat is recovering well from the surgery. Officials from the Bueng Chawak Non-Hunting Area reported that a 15 year old male leopard named Tree, weighing 51.5 kilogrammes, was operated on yesterday at the Bang Chawak Wildlife Management Centre. Tree was…
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Mother drowns in Pattaya pond where she previously ‘heard a voice’ (video)
A mother tragically drowned in a Pattaya pond on Monday night. The woman, 49 year old Amnuay Khemram, had gone into the pond twice in the past after she heard a voice telling her to walk into it, according to her son, 26 year old Thammarong Khemram. Thammarong said his mother went missing from their home at 11am on Monday.…
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Monkeys in central Thailand being trafficked abroad
A caretaker of the Khao Nor Temple in the central province of Nakhon Sawan urges authorities to investigate wildlife traffickers after the temple’s monkeys disappeared and over 50 tranquillizer darts were discovered in the area. Khao Nor Temple is a popular attraction among domestic tourists. Thais usually visit the area to climb the limestone mountain inside the temple and enjoy…
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Security guard deceives and kidnaps 17 year old girl
Police are searching for a 51 year old security guard who deceived and kidnapped a 17 year old girl. Officers reported that they have managed to track the girl’s phone signal and believe they will make an arrest very soon. Nipa Pengpuang, the teenager’s aunt, sought assistance on social media after her niece went missing with a security guard she…
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