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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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On, off, on, off: PM Prayut rips off face mask mid-speech in Phuket
On Monday, just days after the requirement to wear face masks outdoors was re-imposed in Phuket province, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha dramatically ripped off his face mask mid-speech at a tourism event in Phuket, asking the crowd, “Are you ready?” On June 1, Thailand’s Ministry of Health announced that it was no longer a requirement to wear a mask…
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Man dies after being swept out to sea in Phuket
A man in Phuket’s Thalang district has died after being swept out to sea when he went fishing near a beach earlier this week. Rescuers found the man’s body between several giant rocks near Banana Beach on Monday (June 6). The man’s girlfriend said he had been fishing on a rock on Sunday as she accompanied him. When a huge…
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BREAKING NEWS: Former police chief ‘Joe Ferrari’ sentenced to life in prison
The Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases in Bangkok today sentenced to death former cop, Thitisan Utthanaphon, aka. Joe Ferrari, before later commuting his sentence. Thitisan was the police chief in Nakhon Sawan in central Thailand, when he led the torture and eventual death of a suspected drug trafficker in August last year. The Court today ruled that…
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Alleged child rapist/murderer attacked during re-enactment in central Thailand
A man who allegedly raped and murdered two children in 2008 was attacked during a crime re-enactment in Khao Yoi district in the central province of Phetchaburi on Monday, reports Sanook. The suspect, 53 year old Chert Srijoon, went on the run for 14 years after allegedly raping and murdering 13 year old June and 16 year old Naen in…
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Thailand exempts entry visa for Saudi tourists allowing 30-day stay
Thailand yesterday moved a step further to its future relationship with the kingdom of Saudi Arabia when it announced a 30-day visa exemption will be available to all Saudi citizens. Saudis can now enter Thailand and stay for 30 days without applying for a visa before departure. The move comes as both nations step up to restore diplomatic relations which…
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Cambodia officially becomes ‘Covid-Free’
Cambodia now claims it is now completely free of Covid-19, according to a statement released by the country’s health ministry yesterday. The last recorded case has recovered and Cambodia has entered a state of “Covid Zero.” The southeast Asian nation – which has a population of 16.7 million – recorded a total of 136,262 cases, 133,206 recoveries and 3,056 Covid-19…
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Newborn baby allegedly has broken arm after staying in Phuket hospital
A new mother in Phuket is dealing with a horrifying situation after a nurse informed her that her baby had a broken arm. The baby has had to stay in the hospital since she was born on May 23, and a doctor said she choked on amniotic fluid and needed a lung X-ray. The mother, 30 year old Aujchara Jantararat,…
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Angry central Thai locals go bananas over poor road conditions
Residents in Ang Thong, in central Thailand, are so angry with officials in the Department of Rural Roads about the treacherous state of their roads that they have planted banana trees in the cracks of the tarmac in protest. Ang Thong locals have reported the dangerous conditions of their highways, roads and thoroughfares, to officials on a number of occasions…
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Work by convicts cleaning Bangkok’s sewage system starts next month
City Hall has cleared a request by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to work with the Department of Corrections to clean the sewers and improve flood irrigation management using prisoners with good behavioral records. City Hall insists human rights must be respected, use only volunteer inmates, pay wages, use protective equipment, and offer welfare benefits. Around 1,000 inmates from 10 of the…
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New Civil Partnership Bill in Thailand passed by the cabinet
Now the Bill needs to survive its first reading in the lower house of the Thai parliament. Out of nowhere, but perhaps inspired, or prompted by the Pride Month activities around Bangkok, the Thai cabinet has approved what is considered the next step towards same sex marriage in Thailand, a Civil Partnership Bill. This bill will allow same-sex couples to…
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Restaurant feels heat from police after expanding business into bus stop
A restaurant was left with a sour taste in its mouth after being warned about expanding its business into a nearby bus stop. Local police officials were notified by a Facebook blogger, ขาเกือบพลิก, who complained that a restaurant in the northeastern province of Khon Kaen had taken over a bus stop and was serving food to customers. The Facebook page,…
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Quarantine waivered allowing 160,000 migrant workers to enter Thailand
In an effort to stop illegal border crossers looking for work, a newly signed memorandum of understanding will allow more than 160,000 migrant workers to enter Thailand without having to go through the quarantine procedure. Workers from Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos have been given a free pass from tomorrow through the MoU signed if they have been fully vaccinated with…
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Thai thrill-seeker charged for high-jinks riding on a highway
A Thai thrill-seeker has been charged with riding his motorbike dangerously in the central province of Nakhon Sawan. The 49 year old, named Chat, was recorded on video riding with no hands down a highway and at one stage almost ran into the back of a refrigerator truck. The terrifying spectacle was recorded by another motorist who uploaded the video to…
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Indonesia jumps ahead of Thailand with new 5 year digital nomad visa
Yes, remote workers have finally got a break with Indonesia’s announcement of a visa specifically for the digital nomad crowd. In the post-Covid world, with world office and work habits going through such profound changes, the option for a digital nomad visa, where remote workers could work in a south East Asian resort location rather than a dank office, will…
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Penny-pinching government owe 150 police officers more than 1 million baht in overtime
Government House security police yesterday acknowledged they are still owed more than 1 million baht for special overtime services from last year. Some 150 police officers, from the Supervision Division 4 of the Special Branch Bureau 3, who take care of Government House security, say they informed their superiors in the relevant departments about their missing salary but claim that…
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Wearing face masks in Bangkok may soon be dropped
But no date announced yet…. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration acknowledged there is a chance the Thai government will soon drop mask-wearing requirements in some public locations and allow night venues to stay open until 2am. Some restrictions were lifted at nightlife venues on June 1, well at least allowing them to “officially” stay open until midnight (including bars,…
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Policeman attacked as former Sgt major causes mayhem at a Pattaya housing project
A Pattaya policeman was seriously injured after a former senior sergeant major went on a violent rampage. Jetsadabhon Reungrit was arrested and sent to a psychiatric hospital for treatment after a number of anti-social incidents at a Na Jomtien housing government project, in Chon Buri. Residents alerted security guards to a scene after Jetsadabhon began hammering on residents’ doors and…
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What makes Supalai Icon Sathorn the ideal property choice
Sponsored Article Looking for your ideal high-class luxury property in Bangkok? If yes then we’d like to introduce you to Supalai Icon Sathorn, a high-rise luxury condominium located in the heart of Bangkok. This property was awarded the winner of the Asia Pacific Property Awards 2020-2021 prize for mixed-use development in Thailand. The development consists of both commercial buildings as…
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UPDATE: GT200 bomb detectors only good enough to be used as a ‘cat poop scoop’
UPDATE Royal Thai Army spokesperson, Santipong Thammapiya, yesterday announced that the investigation into GT200 bomb detectors has officially ended. Santipong says the NSTD had completed its examination of 320 devices, and the budget spent investigating it, and concluded that the Royal Thai Army would have to return around 3 million baht from the 7.5 million baht budget allocated to the…
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Englishman arrested in Pattaya on child pornography charges
A 45 year old Englishman was arrested yesterday in the Bang Lamung district of Chon Buri in connection with child pornography charges. The man, referred to as “William”, was previously caught by Scotland Yard Police in England on allegations of making, possessing, and spreading child pornographic material between 2008 and 2013 in the UK. But during the judicial procedure, he was…
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SRT Red Line is experiencing a spike in commuters
The State Railway of Thailand yesterday revealed passengers using the new SRT Red Line is on the up. As of last week, 14,000 people have been using the SRT Red Line on a daily basis. Back in November 2021, there were only around 2,000 to 3,000 commuters taking the train. But since the beginning of the year it jumped from…
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“Beware, shakedowns in Thailand’s property market” I Lawyers, Guns and Money
There are great opportunities in Thailand’s real estate and property markets. Plenty of people buy, live in and sell, sometimes for a profit. Some live in their properties and some purchase them for investment. But there are well-publicised problems and even scams that have blunted the image of Thailand’s property industry, particularly the tourist magnets where beaches and a…
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Sexy makeover of Thai wealth goddess ‘Nang Kwak’ goes viral
A tattoo artist’s controversial sexy makeover of a Thai goddess on his Facebook page has gone viral. Tattoo artist Ajarn Joe changed the traditional costume on a Thai wealth goddess, ‘Nang Kwak,’ to a sexy dress and it lit the blue touch paper on social media. The response to the post has been mixed, with some passionately defending the makeover…
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Bangkok taxi driver caught on video beating Chinese passenger with an iron bar
A dash cam video featuring a taxi driver who bludgeoning a man to the ground on a Bangkok road has emerged. A witness said the victim, a Chinese passenger, tried to negotiate a fair price for the service but became irate by the taxi driver and smashed his hand down on the hood of the car making the driver angry.…
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Underwater utopia being created out of decommissioned oil rigs
An Aquaman-type underwater utopia is being developed near Koh Pha Ngan island in Surat Thani province, out of redundant oil and gas rigs. Thailand’s Natural Resources and Environment department revealed plans are well underway to utilise decommissioned oil rigs to develop a new diving destination for tourists located around 7.5 nautical miles north east of Koh Pha Ngan island. The…
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Bangkok’s first LGBTQ parade in over a decade
Bangkok yesterday held its first LGBTQ+ parade since 2006. Many members of the community flocked to the Naruemit Pride event, wearing outrageous rainbow-themed attire and waving rainbow flags down Silom Road. A collaboration of non-governmental organisations planned the first event in 16 years, which also received the blessing of the city’s freshly elected Governor, Chadchart Sittipunt. Several LGBTQ+ activists attended…
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Cannabis penalties to be quashed from Thursday
Thailand’s Courts of Justice announced that suspects and prisoners on charges related to cannabis use and possession would be freed after cannabis and hemp are removed from the Public Health Ministry’s Category 5 drug list. But as we slowly learn the details of cannabis in Thailand, post June 9, we are learning that it’s not all clear and plain sailing…
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Bangkok Governor to propose lifting of midnight close time and mask wearing
The new Bangkok Governor is pushing the CCSA to consider easing the current closing times for the capital’s nightlife, as well as asking for a similar easing of the face mask requirements. His requests follow a botched easing of mask wearing by the Phuket Governor last week where he, one day, announced a variation of the CCSA guidelines for wearing…
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Three charged over rape of a mother of two on a train in Pakistan
Three men in Pakistan have been arrested over the rape of a woman on a train from Karachi to Multan on May 27. Pakistan’s railway ministry reported that the men asked the woman to move to a carriage with air conditioning, before they attacked her on the moving train. One of the accused is a ticket checker for the train.…
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Starving Rohingyas found in South Thailand national park
The chief of a national park in south Thailand announced yesterday (Saturday) that 59 Rohingya migrants had appeared on a beach there .The chief, Phanpong Kongkaeo, said his assistant alerted him that the 59 people appear to be starving and had no food or supplies with them. Phanpong said he has ordered food and drinking water for them. Tarutao National…
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