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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PM Prayut announces Thailand will fully reopen within 120 days
In a speech this evening, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha announced that Thailand must reopen in 120 days, which would be October 14, despite slow vaccine rollout and risk of increased Covid-19 outbreaks. The speech seemed to mark a shift from trying to eradicated Covid-19 in Thailand through controlling the spread and vaccinating the population to an acceptance of the virus’s long-term…
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Thai Airways rehabilitation plan accepted by Bankruptcy Court
The debt rehabilitation plan of Thai Airways International has been accepted by Thailand’s Central Bankruptcy Court, paving the way for the survival of the company. The CBC’s acceptance of the plan is the first step in the debt restructuring process for the struggling airline. In this plan, the state would play an instrumental role in aiding Thai Airways to get…
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Restaurants request easing of Covid-19 rules and financial aid
In a letter to PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Thai Restaurant Association requested urgent relief for the nation’s ailing food and beverage industry. The association released a statement about the letter that they submitted outlining a proposal for easing Covid-19 restrictions on restaurants and dining, as well as offering up financial assistance ideas to keep businesses afloat to ride out the…
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Another data breach: Info leaked on Bangkok Immigration website
In the second data breach this week involving a Thai government website for foreign residents, the Bangkok Immigration site leaked personal details, such as passport numbers and visa information, of expats who registered for an appointment. Expat and local blogger on Thai news, Richard Barrow, posted screenshots of the data breach, with personal details redacted, saying the website is exposing…
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Thailand’s FDA doesn’t approve Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, cites missing data
Today, Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration says Russia’s Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine isn’t approved as crucial data is still missing. TFDA Secretary General Dr Paisal Dunkhum says the information, sent last week by KinGen Biotech, the pharmaceutical company representing the vaccine manufacturer, is the same unfinished date that was already sent to the TFDA. The missing data is: GMP PIC/S…
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Thai government apologises for data leak, blames “temporary glitch”
The Thai government has released a statement apologising for the data leak on Monday which saw people who registered for a Covid vaccine have their personal information revealed. The government says there was a “temporary glitch” on the thailandintervac.com vaccination booking website and the error was because of “urgent system maintenance”. Soon after the website launched, multiple expats complained that…
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6 school closed after infections are found
6 schools in the northern province of Phitsanulok have been ordered to close until further notice after parents and a cable technician were determined to be infected with Covid-19. Luechai Chunakha, the Phitsanulok provincial educational chief says he received a report from a subordinate that the parents of a student from the Huaychangthang School in Suan Miang subdistrict were infected…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 2,331 new cases; provincial totals
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration recorded 2,331 new cases and 40 coronavirus-related deaths, an update in fatalities over the past week. The recent and most severe wave of the virus in Thailand, infecting 175,732 people since April 1, is on a downward track with the number of active cases getting lower each day as the daily recovery count continues…
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Covid-19, food delivery brings rise in plastic and infectious waste
Often, evolving lifestyles, and the technology it brings, are first regarded for their revolutionary game-changing effect before facing down the road the negative unintended consequences of the change. It was decades between when we celebrated the way air travel allowed you to see the world and when we started talking about “carbon footprints”. Many years went by between seeing the…
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Renowned Thai doctor cautions against letting tourists avoid 14 day quarantine
Yesterday, a renowned Thai doctor, told media that he and his colleagues strongly opposed any program designed to admit foreign tourists, even the vaccinated, if the tourists aren’t required to do a strict 14 day quarantine. Further, Dr Prasit thinks that the quarantine should be even longer, depending on the variant. The doctor, and Dean of Faculty of Medicine at…
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PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says sorry again for delays in the Covid-19 vaccine rollout
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has again apologised for holdups in the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines, saying there were a number of reasons for the delays. Earlier this week, 25 vaccination sites in Bangkok postponed inoculations. Several hospitals also delayed vaccinations over the weekend due to a limited supply. “As the prime minister and director of CCSA, I am the top executive…
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100 neglected cats rescued by Save Elephant Foundation
CORRECTION: An earlier report said another organisation rescued the cats. The correct organisation is the Save Elephant Foundation. 100 neglected cats were rescued from homes just north of Bangkok, many caged and kept in dark rooms piled with junk with poor ventilation. Dead cats were found under piles of trash and junk. 6 dogs were also kept in a small…
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Thonburi Healthcare Group to import 5 million doses of Moderna
A private healthcare group in Thailand says it’s planning to purchase 5 million doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine. The Thonburi Healthcare Group says the vaccine will be purchased through the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation, the only mechanism through which the private sector can import Covid-19 vaccines. The Bangkok Post reports that THG expects GPO approval within the coming month, with…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 2,331 new infections and 40 deaths
2,331 new Covid-19 cases and an uptick of 40 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 infections, 175,732 cases have been recorded since April 1. While the daily case count remains high, the wave of infections is on a downward slope with the number of recent…
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Tourism officials eye August reopening under “Pattaya Move On” travel scheme
Pattaya tourism officials are pitching a travel scheme similar to Phuket’s “Sandbox” where the mandatory 14 day quarantine is waived for foreign tourists who are vaccinated against Covid-19. The government plans to reopen Chon Buri to tourists in October, but tourism officials are hoping the start the proposed “Pattaya Move On” travel scheme in August. Under the proposed “Pattaya Move…
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Central Bankruptcy Court approves Thai Airways debt restructuring plan
The high profile restructuring plan to tackle Thai Airways International’s around 400 billion baht debt was approved by the Central Bankruptcy Court today. While the pandemic hit airlines across the globe, Thai Airways has been recording losses for nearly a decade. The record loss of 141.2 billion baht posted last year prompted the struggling airline to file for bankruptcy protection.…
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3 dead in 3 truck crash in Surat Thani
3 people are dead and 1 more person is seriously injured following a 10-wheeled truck smashing into the back of a trailer that was carrying trees. A truck full of tires then careened into them, which then burst into flames. The fiery car wreck happened in the southern Thai province of Surat Thai, early today. The crash happened on the…
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Bangkok Post and Fazwaz join together to galvanise property listings platform
For those seeking to own property in Thailand, FazWaz is seeking to make your property owning dreams easier. They are partnering with Bangkok Post to advertise the country’s biggest offerings of verified direct properties for sale and rent. All will be available on 1 platform. FazWaz, a property technology firm, wants to make the property buying process more streamlined. They…
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Yala enters lockdown today
Yala, a southern Thai province just north of the Malaysian border, is entering a lockdown from today until at least July 7. The lockdown is hoped to control the latest surge of new Covid cases. Yala’s Provincial Governor, Chaisit Panitpon, has imposed measuress to ensure people can’t get in or out of the Yala province. “If everyone follows the measures, I…
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Indonesian fisherman rescued after 9 days adrift at sea
Over the weekend, an Indonesian fisherman who had been drifting in a small boat after his boat engine died, was rescued and brought to Vachira Phuket Hospital. He had been adrift at sea for 9 days before he was rescued by a Phuket fishing boat. Vice Admiral Choengchai Chomchoengphaet says that the fishing crew “Boonlaap 2” told the navy at…
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Thai amulets come to blockchain, blessed by grandmaster of spells and charms
Thailand is introducing Thai amulets on the blockchain. Crypto Amulets are selling Amulet non-fungible tokens (i.e., NFTs). However, unlike other NFTS, this crypto has been blessed by a grand master monk of spells and charms. The monk is LP Heng and the company’s website that sells Crypto Amulets touts the monk for his mystical powers. The company, Crypto Amulets, praises…
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Dogs from Thailand and more than 100 countries banned from US due to risk of rabies
Dogs from Thailand as well as more than 100 other countries are banned from entering the United States for the next year due to a high risk of rabies. The US Centre for Disease Control released a notice yesterday on the temporary suspension of dogs from countries classified by the CDC as high risk for rabies among dogs. Dog rabies…
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“Bubble and seal” method to contain outbreaks at factories, keep business afloat
With a number of Covid-19 clusters at large factories, the Thai government has been working to contain the virus quickly and rollout of vaccinations to the workers to prevent a downfall in the industrial sector. One of the controversial methods of containing the virus is the so-called “bubble and seal” policy at factories where a cluster of infections has been…
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Thai government says vaccine rollout is going “according to plan”
A spokesperson for the Thai government says the vaccination rollout is going “according to plan”. The spokesperson, Anucha Burapachaisri, made the statement today. Anucha says the rollout has reached the government’s target. He says the total amount of people that were vaccinated in the first week of mass vaccinations, from June 7 to June 17 was 1,865,190. The spokesperson also…
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Vaccine registration website for expats back up after data leak
The Covid-19 vaccination website for foreign residents is back up after an apparent data leak yesterday where others could see personal information, including passport numbers, of those who had registered for a vaccine. The faulty site is live again, but for us at The Thaiger, the button to set an appointment isn’t working. Posts of the ThailandIntervac.com data leak were…
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Thai PM ignores demands to step down, insists he’s going nowhere
The Thai PM is fending off near-daily calls for his resignation, insisting he’s going nowhere before the end of his term in office. Prayut Chan-o-cha was speaking during a parliamentary session yesterday, when he declared his intention to see out his 4-year term. Thai PBS World reports that the speech was part of an address to senators, to justify an…
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First Thai Covid-19 vaccine proceeds to human trials
Thailand’s first Covid-19 vaccine has begun human trials, after trials on monkeys and rats showed a high success rate in preventing transmission of the virus. Thai PBS World reports that researchers began human trials yesterday. The vaccine has been developed by the Chula Vaccine Research Centre at Chulalongkorn University and King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in Bangkok. If successful, the “ChulaCov19”…
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UPDATE: Police officers, prosecutors may be investigated over acquittal of Red Bull heir
UPDATE Following yesterday’s report that at least 10 senior officials may be investigated for their role in helping Red Bull heir Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya escape justice, Thai media outlet Naew Na is reporting that 2 police generals are among the 10. ORIGINAL STORY After the Red Bull heir Vorayuth Yoovidhya, aka, “Boss”, was allowed to evade justice for a 2012…
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Airlines look to vaccine rollout to restore demand and boost economy
Airlines are pinning their hopes on Thailand’s vaccine rollout as the key to restoring traveller confidence and boosting the economy. All eyes are on Phuket in particular, to see how the much-discussed sandbox re-opening fares. Wutthiphum Jurangkool, chief executive of Nok Air, says June has already seen a slight increase in bookings. “After passenger traffic recorded a whopping 90% decrease…
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Purchases of fancy street lamps being investigated for possible corruption
The purchases of fancy street lamps in several provinces are now being investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission. The investigations were called for after the exorbitant 642 million baht purchase in Samut Prakan for thousands of fancy solar-powered street lamps, topped with Buddhist mythical figures, caught the attention of residents in the province just southeast of Bangkok. The commission’s secretary-general…
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