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Covid delays construction of 3 train lines
The construction of 3 electric train lines has been postponed due to Covid, says the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand governor Pakapong Sirikantaramas, today. The lines are the Orange Line, the Pink Line, and the Yellow Line. Pakapong says the lines were already 4% to 5% ahead of schedule. Now, the project is 2% to 3% slower than scheduled.…
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Record 156 Covid-19 infections as Phuket edges near 800 a week
The number of weekly rolling Covid-19 infections in Phuket is poised to pass 800, as 5 of the last 7 days have seen infections of over 100 people and the 7-day total now stands at 798 new local Covid-19 infections. According to the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office, yesterday marked a new daily high of 156 new infections and one…
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Purchase of 8.5 million Chinese antigen test kits paused again
Like many things regarding Covid-19, or Thai policy in general, the saga of importing controversial antigen test kits has reversed directions yet again. Following an order last week to proceed with the purchase of 8.5 million Chinese-made antigen test kits, the cabinet has now withdrawn the purchase approval. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha supported the cabinet decision to withdraw the deal to…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 18,417 new cases; provincial totals
18,417 new Covid-19 cases and 297 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Since the start of the pandemic last year, the CCSA has reported a total of 1,102,368 Covid-19 cases. The latest and most severe wave of the virus in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, has accounted for 1,073,505 of those cases. 10,085…
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Phuket-Samui flights on Bangkok Airways resume from today
Flights between Phuket and Koh Samui that had originally been cancelled until the end of the month have now resumed nearly a week early as Bangkok Airways relaunched the flight route with limited service. From today, the Phuket Sandbox and Samui Plus schemes will be reconnected as part of the Sandbox 7+7 Extension, allowing people to arrive in Phuket, spend…
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Man allegedly steals 6 bottles of alcohol gel from restaurant, cleans table before leaving
A man allegedly stole 6 bottles of alcohol gel from a famous restaurant in Udon Thani, a province in northeast Thailand. But before leaving, the man used the gel to clean a table and chair. The 38 year old restaurant owner, identified as Alias, says she woke up in the morning and was shocked to find that tables at her…
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Blood donations desperately needed for Phuket expat
The Phuket Regional Blood Center calling blood donations for an elderly expat’s open-heart surgery. 87 year old Peter Ferry, who is originally from Glasgow, Scotland, told the Phuket News today that he is currently at Bangkok Hospital Phuket waiting for people to donate blood so he can have the surgery. Peter’s blood type is B negative, which is so rare…
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Man was burned to death after a fire broke out in his room in Pathum Thani
A 38 year old man was killed in a fire that broke out in his home in Pathum Thani, just outside Bangkok. Firefighters responded to the fire after midnight yesterday morning. It took around 30 minutes for firefighters to extinguish the flames. Udon Pulatabtang’s body was found in front of his room at around 2:30am. Firefighters from the Suan Phrik…
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Covid-19 controls ramped up at Thailand’s wet markets amid rise in infections
Thailand’s Health Department is ramping up screening measures and Covid-19 controls at wet markets across the country amid a rise in infections linked to the venues. Thai PBS World reports that 14,678 infections have been detected at 132 markets across 23 provinces between April 1 and August 10 this year. As a result, officials are using antigen test kits to…
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Chon Buri man allegedly smashes into several cars while drunk
An alleged drunk driver smashed into several cars. The man had fallen asleep behind the wheel and did not wake up when police arrived to the scene. Officers had to call a locksmith to get him out of the car. Chon Buri police were alerted to the incident after midnight and arrived at the scene with emergency services. There, they…
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Health Ministry to propose re-opening dine-in services to vaccinated customers
Thailand’s Health Ministry is to propose allowing restaurants in dark red zones to re-open for in-house dining from September. Kiattiphum Wongrajit says the proposal is based on declining case numbers in recent days. “The Covid-19 situation appears to be improving. Certain restrictions should therefore be lifted.” The Bangkok Post reports that the Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, has met with representatives…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 18,417 new cases and 297 deaths
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 18,417 new Covid-19 cases and 297 coronavirus-related deaths today. The CCSA also reported 21,186 more recoveries over the past 24 hours. In the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has recorded a total of 1,073,505 cases. There are now 189,268 people being treated for…
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How the Taliban’s Afghanistan takeover could hurt US-Pakistan ties
The fall of Kabul to the Taliban has left many people in Pakistan questioning their country’s future relations with the US. Some hard-liners in Pakistan say Washington will blame Islamabad for the Islamic fundamentalist group’s takeover of Afghanistan. Pakistan’s Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari wrote an article on Tuesday asserting that “her country would no longer accept being scapegoated for…
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High hopes for Zambia’s new president ‘HH’
Hakainde Hichilema ran for president five times before winning this year. Popularly known as “HH” or “Bally”, a slang term for for ‘father,’ Hichilema won the Zambian election by almost a million votes. But the work ahead was not lost on him during his victory speech: “We have an enormous task ahead to revive our economy and deliver on your…
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Video of alleged police killing during extortion attempt shared on social media
A video of the alleged police killing during an extortion attempt was shared on social media today by a well-known Thai lawyer. The footage shows officers putting a plastic bag over a man’s head and beating him. Reports say the man died from suffocation, but the district chief allegedly ordered his subordinates to write the death off as drug overdose.…
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80 year old Australian man kicked to the ground in Chiang Mai road altercation
An 80 year old Australian man was assaulted after he smacked a car that almost ran him over. The driver of the car got out of his vehicle and kicked the octogenarian in the back following the older man’s car smacking. Dashcam footage captured the incident that happened in Chiang Mai, the northern Thai province which is hoping to launch…
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Vaccine update: Pfizer available to American veterans, foreigners in Pattaya
The Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine is now available to American veterans living in Thailand as well as foreign residents in Pattaya who are in the “at risk” groups, according to Democrats Abroad Thailand. The vaccine doses were donated to Thailand from the United States. Two doses of the vaccine are free under the Thai government’s mass immunisation campaign. Bangkok Hospital Pattaya…
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4 year old boy’s body found in Bangkok well
A missing 4 year old boy’s body has been found in a Bangkok well used to mix cement. The boy had been missing since last week and his mother had previously told the Mirror Foundation, a humanitarian organisation, that her son had vanished while she was washing dishes. An investigation was launched following the boy’s disappearance. Eventually, the officials decided…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 17,165 new cases; provincial totals
17,165 new Covid-19 cases and 226 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Another 20,059 patients were marked as “recovered” in the 24-hour period since the last count. There are now 192,334 active Covid-19 cases in Thailand. The number has been on a downward trend over the past several days as the daily count for…
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Pattaya’s infectious waste continues to accumulate
Pattaya is facing a new problem besides its growing number of Covid cases. The city by the Gulf of Thailand is amassing a vast amount of infectious waste, which has increased the garbage disposal problems the city is encountering. Manoj Nongyai, the deputy mayor who also oversees the city’s environment office, said today that prior to the Covid pandemic, Pattaya…
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A kayak tour of Argentina for environmental protection
Juan Camelia is not really much of a sportsman. He got his kayak just six years ago, to paddle about on the Parana River and go camping in the great outdoors. Now, he is one of more than 40 kayakers who have caused a considerable stir in Argentina with their spectacular environmental campaign to get the Congress to pass a…
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Soldier injured by pipe bomb in Yala
A soldier has been injured after a pipe bomb was tossed into a military base in Yala, the “deep south” province near the Malaysian border with occasional violence related to the religious separatist insurgency. The incident occurred last night and was detailed in a report from the Muang police station. The Bangkok Post reports that the attack happened around 8pm…
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Probe into alleged mishandling of Red Bull heir fatal hit-and-run case is underway
The investigation into the alleged mishandling of the 2012 fatal hit-and-run case where the Red Bull heir Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya allegedly sped through Thong Lor, running over a police officer with his Ferrari, is underway and is expected to be closed in 16 months. Boss managed to evade justice and has since fled the country. Now, 15 senior police officers,…
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TAT plans to launch Chiang Mai tourism plan in October
Chiang Mai is getting ready to launch a “Bubble and Sealed” tourism plan where visitors can travel to 4 districts in Chiang Mai, the northern Thai province. The plan comes by way of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. The 4 districts are the Mueang District, the Mae Rim district, the Mae Taeng district, and the Doi Tao district. The opening…
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Don’t spray ethyl alcohol on your food, warns FDA
Thailand’s FDA is cautioning people against spraying ethyl alcohol onto their food, under the misguided belief that this will get rid of Covid. While used in the making of sanitiser gel and other products, ethyl alcohol is not supposed to be eaten as it is toxic. The TFDA says there are different grades of alcohol, such as food-grade alcohol, which…
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Phang Nga hopes to welcome 30,000 visitors under 7+7 travel scheme
Tourism officials in the southern province of Phang Nga hope to welcome 30,000 foreign tourists in the last quarter of the year. Such numbers should generate around 2.5 billion baht in revenue, according to a Bangkok Post report. The Tourism Authority of Thailand says that after the opening of Certificate of Entry registration for the 7+7 extension scheme, over 700…
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Red Shirts to lead anti-government “car mob” protest on Sunday
An anti-government protest planned for Bangkok on Sunday will be led by 2 prominent Red Shirt activists, ahead of a no-confidence debate in parliament. The Bangkok Post reports that Sombat Boonngamanong and Nattawut Saikuar will lead the “car mob” rally, which will take place at 2pm in front of the Thai PBS office on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road. Posting on Facebook,…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 17,165 new cases and 226 deaths
17,165 new Covid-19 cases and 226 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Another 20,059 patients were marked as “recovered” in the 24-hour period since the last count. In the latest and most severe wave of the virus in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has reported a total of 1,055,088 Covid-19 cases.…
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Are India’s emergency visas for Afghans issued based on religion?
Days after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan, the Indian government introduced a new category of visa to fast-track the applications of Afghans who want to come to India and flee what has become a growing humanitarian crisis. It was announced that all Afghans, irrespective of their religion, could apply for the so-called e-Emergency X-Misc Visa online. However, the announcement…
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Could Afghanistan under Taliban rule become a haven for Islamist militants?
As the US withdraws its military from Afghanistan, it is clear that Washington’s goal in the country has always been to guarantee American security. President Joe Biden left little doubt to this effect during a speech last week. “Our single most vital interest in Afghanistan remains what it always was, to prevent a terrorist attack on our country.” Biden’s assertion…
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