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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Chip shortage sees spike in new computer product prices
A global chip, or semiconductor shortage, is pushing new computer prices higher along with the demand for IT devices as more and more people turn to remote work and schooling. Somsak Pejthaveeporndej, chief executive of VST ECS Thailand, says the worldwide shortage includes integrated circuits that are used in a wide range of devices such as computers and IT products. Somsak…
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Private hospitals to order 5 million Moderna vaccine doses for paying customers
Private hospitals in Thailand say they are ordering 5 million Moderna vaccine doses for paying clients who may want a different vaccine brand. Thailand’s Private Hospital Association, which includes more than 200 private hospitals across the country, is reviewing orders for the vaccine from its members and will order the vaccines through the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation. Officials say private hospitals…
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Opposition vows to oppose budget, calls on coalition members to do likewise
Thailand’s main opposition party says it will oppose the national budget when it enters parliament on May 31. The Pheu Thai party is also calling on members of the ruling coalition to do the same. Deputy party leader Yutthapong Charassathien says his party will vote against the budget to prevent the bill from passing. According to a Bangkok Post report,…
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Experts say a choice in Covid-19 vaccines will help boost immunity against variants
A choice in Covid-19 vaccines is being touted by health experts as a way to help protect against virus variants. Such experts are calling on the Thai government to include a variety of brands in its national vaccination drive after the South African variant was discovered in the South last Saturday. The B.1.351 variant is thought to be the most…
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Can Thailand be ready to open on July 1? | VIDEO
So here we are, about 5 weeks away from Thailand re-opening, again, to general travel. Except for the much publicised busload or two of Chinese tourists who have graced our shores over the past 6 months, tourism, has been very patchy. Well, statistically a lot closer to non-existent. Except for domestic travel, which the Thai government have been pumping up…
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Suan Dusit Poll: most people will get gov’t Covid-19 vaccine
A new Suan Dusit Poll this week reveals that a majority of people in Thailand are willing to be vaccinated against Covid-19 by whatever shot is available from the government. The poll, conducted by Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, surveyed 2,644 people online throughout Thailand between May 17 and May 20 about their opinions on the government’s push to vaccinate people…
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Sunday UPDATE: 3,382 new infections and 17 deaths, provincial totals
This morning the public health ministry has announced 3,382 new cases of Covid-19 and 17 new deaths across Thailand. The daily numbers, again, are oddly statistically consistent with the daily toll around 1,900 – 2,500 for the past month (with few variations). Although the daily totals, even without the prison numbers, are slowly creeping up, mostly as a result of…
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Doctor urges Pfizer, Moderna vaccine to fight B.1.351 variant
Reacting to the news that the B.1.351 variant of Covid-19 (commonly nicknamed the South African variant) has now been found in Thailand, a senior doctor at the Siriraj Centre of Research Excellence Management has called upon the government to obtain Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccine as quickly as possible. In a Facebook post yesterday, the doctor suggested that…
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B.1.351 South African Covid-19 variant found in Thailand
Like the world’s most morbid bingo game, Thailand can mark off B.1.351 on its Covid-19 scorecard. The strain of Coronavirus, sometimes called the South African variant, has been detected in undocumented migrants working in the southern province of Narathiwat. After studying samples collected May 13 from the cluster in the Tak Bai district, the Covid-19 Network Investigations group and independent…
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Covid Sunday UPDATE: 3,382 new infections and 17 deaths
This morning the public health ministry has announced 3,382 new cases of Covid-19 and 17 new deaths across Thailand. The daily numbers, again, are oddly statistically consistent with the daily toll around 1,900 – 2,500 for the past month (with few variations). Although the daily totals, even without the prison numbers, are slowly creeping up, mostly as a result of…
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DDC justifies plan to get 2 extra doses per AstraZeneca vial
The Department of Disease Control in Thailand has come under fire for plans to stretch vials of AstraZeneca to get more Covid-19 vaccines out of each vial. While the official recommendation is to produce 10 vaccines out of each AstraZeneca vial, the DDC argues that there’s enough material inside to produce up to 12 shots. The government has been receiving…
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Covid UPDATE: 3,052 new cases, 24 Covid-related deaths, provincial totals
This morning the public health ministry added another 3,052 infections and 24 new Covid-related deaths over the past 24 hours. Out of today’s new cases, 605 came from the country’s prisons where major clusters have emerged. The daily totals, even without the prison numbers, show a slow upward trend in new cases, the vast majority around Bangkok in high-density housing…
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Covid UPDATE Saturday: 3,052 new infections and 24 Covid-related deaths
This morning the public health ministry has added another 3,052 infections and 24 new Covid-related deaths over the past 24 hours. Out of today’s new cases, 605 came from the country’s prisons where major clusters have emerged. The daily totals, even without the prison numbers, show a slow upward trend in new cases, the vast majority around Bangkok in high-density…
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Thailand focuses on international, but needs domestic tourism
With Covid-19 closing borders for more than a year, the damage from losing international tourism has revealed a major weakness in Thailand’s overall tourism strategy. With up to 18% of the country’s GDP brought in by tourism, the disproportionate dependence on foreign travellers and lack of attention to domestic tourism has ravaged the industry and the national economy. Thailand had…
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Thailand News Today | Chon Buri jump in cases, China vaccinates citizens around the world | May 21
The province of Chon Buri, just east of Bangkok, has reported a big jump in Covid cases today, China has sent vaccine doses to Thailand to have Chinese citizens inoculated under Beijing’s “Spring Sprout” program, A dog owner is reeling after his beloved pet brought him a “gift” of 2,000 methamphatime pills and A Chinese man, with citizenship based in…
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Get vaccinated, win a cow: Chiang Mai district starts vaccine incentive campaign
A district in Chiang Mai has launched a campaign to help entice residents to get vaccinated against Covid-19… a chance to win a live cow. Each week for the rest of the year, the Mae Chaem district will give away a young cow. To enter the raffle, residents have to be vaccinate against the coronavirus. Since the start of the…
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CCSA proposes extending Thailand’s State of Emergency for another 2 months
Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration is proposing an extension of the nationwide Emergency Decree for another 2 months. At a meeting today, the CCSA and Public Health Ministry noted that it may take until the end of July to bring the latest Covid wave under control. The last declaration of a State of Emergency has been in place since…
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Covid UPDATE: 3,481 new cases and 32 deaths, provincial totals
3,481 new Covid-19 cases and 32 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. There are now 42,827 active Covid-19 cases in Thailand. Since the start of the pandemic last year, the CCSA has reported a total of 123,066 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 735 virus-related deaths. Out of the new cases, 1,036 infections were…
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Vaccine registration for foreigners in Thailand to open June 7
Foreigners living in Thailand will be able to register for a Covid-19 vaccine starting June 7, the first day of the country’s mass vaccination campaign. Foreigners can register for a vaccine on-site at hospitals. Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Natapanu Nopakun recommends that expats register for a vaccine at a hospital that has their health records on file. Expats need…
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China provides vaccine doses for citizens living in Thailand
In a global Covid-19 immunization campaign, China has sent vaccine doses to Thailand to have Chinese citizens inoculated under Beijing’s “Spring Sprout” programme. A vaccination site under the programme is already up and running in Bangkok. The Associated Press says China had donated 500,000 doses, and Thailand then agreed to vaccinate Chinese expats. Around 150,000 Chinese nationals live in Thailand. “Spring…
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Bodies of Thai workers killed in Gaza strike to be flown home next week
Thailand’s Labour Minister, Suchart Chomklin, has confirmed the bodies of 2 Thai men killed in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, will be flown home next week. 44 year old Weerawat Karunborirak and 24 year old Sikharin Sangamram were working in Israel when they were killed by a rocket strike launched by the Palestinian Hamas group. Suchart says he…
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Covid UPDATE Friday: 3,481 new infections and 32 Covid-related deaths
There have been 3,481 new infections announced today and 32 Covid-related deaths in the past 24 hours. 951 of today’s new cases come from Thailand’s prisons. There will be more detailed announced in our daily afternoon Covid UPDATE. Check out our latest video about some great deeds being done in the Klong Toey slum… • The Thai government are going…
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Thailand News Today | Vaccine roll out, Nok Air heads to Bankruptcy court
Virologist Dr. Yong Poovorawan says that people can contract Covid even after full recovery from a bout of the virus, 70% of the population in Thailand is expected to have received at least their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine by September, Nok Air has handed in its business rehabilitation plan after extending the deadline twice and 77 year old…
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1.5 million more Sinovac vaccines arrive in Bangkok
This morning officials from the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation received another 1.5 million Sinovac vaccines from China for a total of 6 million jabs so far. The containers arrived at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport at about 5:35 am, marking the 8th delivery from Sinovac since Thailand made a deal to secure vaccines from the Chinese manufacturer. The GPO managing director confirmed the…
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Americans arrested over Bangkok kidnap attempt released on bail
Edited on June 10 Thai police arrested an alleged former US Marines*, along with an American and 2 Thai men, including a senior police officer, for allegedly kidnapping a foreign businessman at a Bangkok restaurant in Thong Lor and then demanding a US$3 million ransom. The men allegedly abducted 60 year old Wen Yu Chung, from Taiwan, over a failed…
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Some inmates to be released on parole following Covid-19 outbreaks at prisons
With thousands of inmates infected with Covid-19 at several Thailand prisons, the Department of Corrections is now tackling its longstanding problem at prisons… overcrowding. There’s now talk within the department of possibly granting some prisoners parole, or at least reducing their sentences as a short-term measure to reduce the overcrowding. Others in court detention, while awaiting trial, might be released…
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Covid UPDATE: 2,636 new cases, provincial totals
2,636 new Covid-19 cases, including 671 in prisons, were reported today in the CCSA’s daily briefing. Another 25 coronavirus-related deaths were logged today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 703. Since the start of the pandemic last year, the CCSA has reported a total of 119,585 Covid-19 infections. Thailand now has 49,210 active Covid-19 cases. Bangkok remains the…
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Experts urge Covid-19 recovered people to still get vaccinated
The head of the Centre of Excellence in Clinical Virology at Chulalongkorn University issued a statement today advocating for people who have already had Covid-19 to still get vaccinated. Virologist Yong Poovorawan posted on Facebook saying that recovered Covid-19 patients are still at risk and should be vaccinated. The post was in response to a question from someone confused about…
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Police in western Thailand discover 19 Burmese migrants hidden in truck
Police in the western province of Kanchanaburi have found 19 Burmese migrants concealed in a small truck in the district of Thong Paphum. The discovery comes as officers are ordered to crack down on migrant workers crossing illegally into Thailand. Thai Residents reports that local police officers were acting on a tip-off that Burmese migrants were being smuggled across the…
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Royal Thai Police to investigate 29 officers for suspected ties to labour trafficking
At least 29 police officers are being investigated for suspected involvement in labour trafficking. The Royal Thai Police Headquarters has appointed a committee to investigate the officers, a source told Nation Thailand. The national police deputy chief will oversee the investigation. Border patrol has reportedly been heightened over the past year due concerns that migrants who are entering Thailand illegally,…
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