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 Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand
Moving to Thailand offers plenty of excitement and adventure, but the local healthcare system can be complex to navigate as an expat. From unique health risks to high costs at private hospitals, having a comprehensive health insurance plan is essential....
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Now, a SEVEN metre python!
A video posted on YouTube shows Pathum Thani snake catchers round up a seven metre long, almost 100 kilogram, python from near the yard of a PTT gas depot in Khlong Luang district, just north of Bangkok. Amnat Saengsawang said it was the biggest snake he has captured in 30 years of doing the job. Click to watch the video…
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Storm warning for central and north-east next week
After storms battered parts of the north-east at the start of this week, affecting more than 200 homes, the Thai Meteorological Department has issued another summer storm warning. They say storms are expected to hit northeastern and eastern regions from next Tuesday followed by the central and northern regions, including Bangkok, on Wednesday. They say the forecast bad weather is…
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7-11 rolling out facial recognition in its 11,000 Thai stores
Smile, you’re on camera. Your friendly, neighbourhood convenience store, 7-Eleven store is rolling out facial recognition technology. The Japanese-owned franchise has 11,000 stores in Thailand. The convenience store chain says they’ll will roll out the technology in a number of different ways, including to identify regular and loyal customers, monitor stock levels of products and better analyse customer traffic trends.…
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Porsche Panamera blaze during battery charge
A 10 million baht Porsche Panamera caught fire while its battery was recharging in Bangkok’s Taling Chan district early Friday and the flames also damaged the owner’s luxury home. Police and firefighters were summoned at 6.30am and arrived to find the sports car already engulfed and fire in the living room of the house. After the blaze was extinguished, homeowner…
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THAIGER TODAY Friday, March 16
Six confirmed human deaths from Rabies | ‘X-Ray Outlaw Foreigner’ crackdown | Prawit gets another extension to explain himself | Burmese man drowns off Maithon Island | Thais are discussing ‘final solution’ to stray dog problem | Storms flatten homes in north-east.
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Police inspections – What are your rights?
There are many stories about bad police planting evidence or fake police trying to misrepresent themselves to shake down an innocent person. What should you do if a person claiming to be a police officer comes up to you and wants to inspect your person or belongings? The primary duty of the police is to protect people and property and…
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THAIGER TODAY Thursday, March 15
Dog and cat registration may become compulsory | Premchai shows up to acknowledge charges | ONE…BIG…SNAKE | BKK Japanese restaurants reject fish from Fukushima | Mercedes invests in local electric car plant | Thanathorn’s new ‘Future’ party launched this morning.
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21 year old arrested over assault on 82 year old following Facebook campaign
A young motorcyclist surrendered to police last night (Wednesday) evening following a Facebook campaign, which saw a reward of 60,000 baht being raised for his arrest, after he was recorded on video kicking and hitting an elderly man in Bangkok. 21 year old Narathorn Sodetiyung reportedly admitted that he had assaulted 82 year old Jaroon Maneephan after the latter knocked…
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Pet registration on the way
It looks like Thailand is going to get tough on people who abandon their pets and also provide better control for disease outbreaks like the current Rabies infections around the Kingdom. New laws are being proposed that will require pet owners to register and microchip their animals. This is common practice in most western countries and allows lost animals to…
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Only a tiny fraction of BKK pets registered as being vaccinated against Rabies
Only 5,193 of Bangkok’s 1.136 million stray and pet dogs and cats are registered as having been vaccinated against rabies, a senior Agriculture Ministry official said this morning (Wednesday). Ministry spokesman and inspector-general Sorawit Thanito said only 6,233 pet cats and dogs were registered with authorities in the capital and 1,266 of them had been sterilised. But most owners by…
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THAIGER TODAY Wednesday, March 14
Rabies situation ‘under control’ | Motorbike driver lucky to walk away from accident | No toilets at tsunami museum | BKK motor tollways free over Songkran | Prosecution case ready over Toyota Thai Football League match-fixing | FBI attempts to interview ‘sex-therapist’ couple who ‘know things’ | Indian man and Thai accomplice arrested over visa scam.
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Pattaya police on the hunt for ‘amorous couple’
Tourist police are trying to locate and take legal action against a foreign couple who were caught on video having sex on Dong Tan beach in Pattaya City. The couple appear in a 31 second clip that was taken at 8am on Sunday and widely shared on social networks. The video shows an unidentified man, who looks like a westerner,…
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Kratom delivery kills two
A car transporting Kratom leaves crashed into an innocent pedestrian then careered into a drain, killing both victim and driver this morning (March 13) in Krabi Province. A 31 year old man from Sadao, Songkhla, Kusol Kaewrattana, lost control of his Toyota Fortuner that was transporting 30 sacks of Kratom leaves and crashed into 68 year old Lek Sae-Iew, who…
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Naked tourist hugs a rock in Samui. But not just any rock!
Samui residents are calling on police to locate and arrest a naked foreign tourist who was photographed hugging Hin Ta rock, which is regarded by local residents as a symbol of Koh Samui in Surat Thani. The photos show the unidentified woman walking around and hugging the rock, which resembles a phallus, to pose for photos. They were posted on…
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THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, March 13
National ban on darts boards | Premchai denied postponement to acknowledge his bribery charges | Daring escape by pick-up in Rayong | Air pollution returns to Bangkok | Boat sinks off Krabi | Disability campaigner threatens to sue BTS and BKK Authorities | Police nab a pick-up with 1,800 kg of beef; that’s one BIG BBQ!!
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Banned! Dart board ban now in effect across Thailand. Bars urged to get boards registered.
Thailand’s ban on bars and entertainment venues allowing punters to play darts is now in affect nationwide. In January, officials in Pattaya raided bars along Soi 6 to confiscate the ‘illegal’ dart boards.Bar owners and staff were told that venues must now have a dart board license if they wanted to be able to allow customers to play the popular…
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THAIGER TODAY Monday, March 12
New faces on the political scene | Rabies Epidemic Zone for Nonthaburi and Bangkok | Fire in Pattaya’s Walking Street | 27 tourists arrested on island near Ranong | Spate of drownings over weekend | Guy in hospital with amnesia, ummm, actually wanted by police… BUSTED!
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The new face of Thai politics?
The so-called “new blood” political party to be led by “pro-democracy” billionaire Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit has promised to be an alternative to lead the conflict-plagued country out of the cycle of political division. The 39 year old auto-parts tycoon admitted that he had been described as “another Thaksin Shinawatra”, but asked for time to prove himself. “There’s no way to prove…
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Rabies survey shows widespread ignorance
Amid a major outbreak of rabies nationwide, including three human deaths so far this year, a survey reveals major misunderstandings among the public about the disease. The Public Health Ministry survey shows that up to 60 per cent of the nearly 12,000 people surveyed wrongly believed that rabies could be cured. Additionally, 34 per cent did not know that death…
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Fire in Pattaya’s Walking Street. Two injured.
Bars in Walking Street Pattaya were in flames last night (Saturday) after a transformer exploded in the packed red light district. Two tourists were rushed to hospital. Witnesses say there was a large explosion around 10pm. The blaze quickly spread to neighbouring bars as motorbikes parked on the street burst into flames as well. Dozens of bars in a plaza…
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Nearly 1300 houses damaged after week of ‘freak storms’
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation says that summer storms have damaged 1,293 houses in 24 Thai provinces. And one person has been killed as a result of the storms, primarily in the north-east and central provinces. The storms have hit the 24 provinces between March 5-8. The director-general, Chayapol Thitisakdi, says summer storms have hit 189 villages in 57…
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THAIGER TODAY Friday, March 9
Freak storm cells caught on video | Changes for renters and landlords | Russian tourist run over and killed in Pattaya | Raid on Chiang Mai house selling dodgy health supplements | Rabies situation – under control but under watch.
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Briton dies on bus from Bangkok to Phetchabun
A Thai passenger was horrified to discover Thursday night that he had sat for hours next to a dead British passenger on board an air-conditioned bus from Bangkok to Phetchabun. 61 year old Michael Richarddeen was discovered dead in his bus seat at 7.30pm when the Bangkok-Phu Rua bus stopped at a Phet Prasert bus parking point on Saraburi-Lomsak…
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Rama X banknotes go into circulation from April 6
The first banknotes bearing a portrait of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn will be issued on April 6, Chakri Day. The Bank of Thailand announced on Thursday that, in accordance with permission granted by the palace, it would release banknotes bearing an image of King Rama X that day in the denominations of 20, 50 and 100 baht 500 baht…
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Has Alexa been laughing at you?
Voice recognition personal assistants are all the rage at the moment, sometimes with hilarious results. Alexa is a offering from Amzon and might be having the last laugh. (By the way Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos was found to be the world’s richest man in a Bloomberg article today). Anyway, Amazon is promising to keep virtual assistant Alexa from spontaneously cackling,…
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THAIGER TODAY Thursday, March 8
Freak storm hits Nakhon Pratom uprooting power poles | 7 Russians arrested in a Phuket kidnapping incident | Re-enactment of Premchai’s alleged bribery conversation | Chinese tourist assaulted in Krabi | New tourism plan for Thailand’s west coast including a high speed train.
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THAIGER TODAY Wednesday, March 7
Outgoing tourism will rise to 10 million this year | Rabies precautions in BKK | Thai Cabinet waters down the fines for illegal foreign workers | Premchai’s wife will be charged for owning elephant tusks | Bank of Thailand has laid down the foundations for banking agents | Aussie firefighter helping out in Lampang | Krabi residents support closing down…
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E-commerce sites will be blocked if they don’t pay local VAT
Do you shop online? Plenty do, and increasingly retail is heading offshore and the main winners are Thai Post. A legal loophole, allowing foreign e-commerce companies to avoid paying Thai VAT, may soon be plugged with new legislation. But the Thai Revenue Department is threatening to block giant foreign e-commerce websites if they don’t pay VAT taxes in the future,…
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What does Anastasia Vashukevich know?
PHOTOS: Instagram The raid on a ‘sex seminar’ in love-making in Pattaya last week has grown into an international story of intrigue with links to the ‘Russia-meddling-in-US-election’ ongoing investigation. A Belarusian escort, with close ties to a powerful Russian oligarch said from behind bars in Bangkok, yesterday that she had more than 16 hours of audio recordings that could help…
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Oscar winners – 2018 Academy Awards
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE Mary J. Blige, “Mudbound” Allison Janney, “I, Tonya” *WINNER Lesley Manville, “Phantom Thread” Laurie Metcalf, “Lady Bird” Octavia Spencer, “The Shape of Water” ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE Willem Dafoe, “The Florida Project” Woody Harrelson, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” Richard Jenkins, “The Shape of Water” Christopher Plummer, “All the Money in the World” Sam…
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