News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Summer scorcher heading our way – winter was ‘unusually’ warm
“Thailand’s summer starts this Thursday.” The Thai Meteorological Department is forecasting “an extraordinarily hot and arid summer” for Thailand from this Thursday, the official start of Thailand’s summer – the HOT season (Thailand leaps from a cool winter straight into its local summer season). Seven provinces in the North and western regions are expecting extreme heat between 40-44C. Phuwieng Prakhammintara,…
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54 year old Swede dodges traffic in Thepkasattri Road, Phuket
PHUKET: Achadtaya Chuenniran A 54 year old Swedish tourist is now in custody after running around Thepkasattri road yesterday morning dodging cars and causing traffic mayhem. Luckily no cars came in contact with the man police described as ‘mentally ill’. A video clip from the incident shows the man running in and out of the traffic on Thepkasattri Road in…
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Suspect arrested over 12 year old’s rape last Wednesday
by Supachai Phetchthewee, Khanathit Srihirundaj “Samruay initially confessed to police that he had raped the girl because he became sexually aroused after taking drugs.” A 42 year old suspect, wanted for the alleged rape of a 12 year old girl in an abandoned building in Bangkok’s Bang Kapi district last Wednesday, has been arrested and taken into custody. ‘Samruay Jitcheun’ was arrested…
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Woman falls to her death from Bangkok hotel
A Portuguese woman has died after an incident at a Bangkok hotel in the Maha Preuktharam sub-district this morning. The 24 year old was found dead around at 8am Sunday morning after falling, or jumping, from a sixth floor open deck of a the hotel. Bang Rak police deputy inspector Pol Captain Thanapat Suwannak says the body of the foreign tourist, later…
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Uighur escapees captured and back in Mukdahan jail
Seven undocumented Uighurs, who escaped from an immigration facility in northeast Mukdahan, on the Laos border in far north-east Thailand last week, have been recaptured. Pol Colonel Sith Sirikangwalkul, the acting Immigration chief for the region, says that one was recaptured on Tuesday (February 12), the same night everyone escaped, and two more were found in a forest two kilometres away…
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Thai fishing industry says new laws are ‘unrealistic’
by Kanittha Thepajorn A draft bill for the improved protection of fishing boat crews has sailed through the National Legislative Assembly. NLA members voted unanimously to endorse the Bill on Labour Protection in the Fisheries Sector. The Nation reports that the writers of the Bill say the new laws will bring the conditions on fishing vessels up to par with the…
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Fake visa stamp gang arrested in Nonthaburi
PHOTO: Immigration Bureau Two Thais have been arrested over fake visa stamps being used at a foreign employment agency in Nonthaburi, northern Bangkok, yesterday. The Immigration Bureau reports that the Nonthaburi Immigration Office was notified of the allegedly fake visa stamps. Lt Gen Surachate Hakparn led a team of officials to search CBS World Company, a foreign worker employment agency.…
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Amnesty for possession of cannabis in Thailand?
The Government is looking at a plan to grant amnesty to those who have been using, or have, cannabis in their possession, But only if they report to authorities within a given time frame. The Drug Committee approved three draft legislations for amnesty yesterday. If the drafts become law even possessors of cannabis, who are not patients or research units,…
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Bangkok Airlines schedules more flights out of Chiang Mai
Competition is heating up on two direct airline routes out of Chiang Mai – to Krabi and Luang Prabang in Laos. But Bangkok Airways is facing tough competition on the direct Chiang Mai – Krabi route, already served with three daily Thai AirAsia flights, while Bangkok Airways will schedule only three flights in March and up to the the end…
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New Camry Hybrid provides luxury in a larger model with electric advantages
by Kingsley Wijayasinha – The Nation Weekend The interest in electric cars is hotting up in Thailand but Thai manufacturers, so far, have been reluctant to take the FULL electric plunge. In the meantime Toyota is hoping their new Camry Hybrid will draw a good number of customers thanks to its packaging overhaul. The hybrid is battery operated with a…
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Proposal to ban alcohol sales on Songkran day, April 13
Coming up with another blunt tool to help curb Thailand’s horrendous annual road toll during Songkran, the Alcohol Control Committee is proposing a ban be placed on the sale of alcohol on April 13, Songkran day. The ACC has passed a resolution to ban the sale of alcoholic drinks on the national Songkran holiday but says the proposal will have…
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Car and house loans surged in 2018
The Bank of Thailand says they’re concerned about the double-digit growth in loans for cars last year. The central bank is now monitoring the trend and will keep track of statistics for the rest of 2019. Their concerns about the Thai mortgage market the year before resulted in new regulations coming into effect this April. Loans for cars were up…
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Police to target motorbike rental shops when renters are unlicensed
Police are targeting the rental operators of motorbikes when unlicensed foreigners have motorbike accidents. Police today say they are questioning the renters of the bike involved in Sunday night’s crash on Patong Hill between a pickup truck driven by 47 year old Thavorn Glasueak and a motorbike carrying two Russians, a 29 and 31 year old. This incident happened at the…
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Voters like Prayut as PM but prefer Pheu Thai as the party they will vote for
With the election campaign now digging into its first week on the hustings, the polls are starting to indicate where the early poll sentiments are leaning. Thai PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha is the favourite for the prime minster’s position following the election, but Pheu Thai is the party people want to see lead the formation of the new government, according…
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Another 522 law breaking foreigners rounded up in crackdown
Round ’em up. Ship ’em out. The “X-Ray Outlaw Foreigners” crackdown to rid Thailand of over-stayers and illegal workers continues with more than 500 arrested in the past week. The Immigration Police Bureau deputy chief Pol Maj-General Itthipol Itthisarnronnachai announced yesterday that a total of 522 people had been arrested at 220 different locations. Of these, 287 were charged with having…
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Phuket: Area to have water shut off for 12 days
The Phuket Water Authority (PWA) has announced that water supply in some areas of Cherng Talay will be cut from February 16 to February 28. The supply will be shut off in some areas during day and night. Water will be shut off while work is being carried out moving and replacing water pipes. Areas to be affected in area around…
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19 injured after bus crashes into Sa Kaeo property
PHOTOS: สวยพันธุ์ไม้ ท้ายบ้าน / อาสาสมัครมูลนิธิร่วมกตัญญูจังหวัดสระแก้ว จุดวัฒนานคร 19 people have been injured after a bus plunged into a local house today. FM 91 BKK reports that the accident happened at 8.10am this morning near Wattana Nakhon District Office in Sa Kaeo, on the Cambodian border, east of Bangkok. At the scene police found 19 people injured as a result of the…
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UPDATE: Kalasin shooting. Husband dies after shooting.
A Kalasin private school executive, shot in the head after a Valentine’s Day fight with his wife, has died in hospital as a result of his injuries. The death of 45 year old Ratthasart Panichpongsapak has prompted police to file a murder charge against the man’s 44 year old wife Mayura Panichpongsapak. Mayura was initially charged with attempted murder and…
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Husband shot after wife questions “mystery” phone call
A man in Kalasin was seriously wounded with a gunshot to the head early this morning. Kalisan is in the north-east of Thailand. Daily News reports that the man’s wife says she was ‘furious’ after her husband refused to explain a mystery phone call during a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner. Somdej police arrived at the two storey house after the local Asoke…
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Update on renovations to Krabi International Airport
The Thailand Airports Authority has updated the expansion and refurbishment plans currently underway at Krabi International Airport. They report that work on a third terminal building will be completed by 2022. Manager Online reports that Amphawan Wannako, the director-general, says that work is also being done to refurbish Terminals 1 and 2, including the car parks. “When the work is…
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Motorbike driver dies after his head crushed in Udon Thani, truck driver flees
A motorbike driver has died after his head was crushed by a truck and trailer yesterday. The trailer diver fled the scene in Udon Thani. The accident occurred in Kudjab Road in Mueang Udon Thani, North East of Thailand. Police and emergency responders arrived to find the body of Thai man, later identified as 39 years old Sutin Ngonchalee. Nearby…
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Thai-Indian Funfair in Bangkok tomorrow
The fifth Thai-Indian Funfair returns to Srinakharinwirot University in Bangkok tomorrow (Saturday) to strengthen cultural relations between both countries. The fair arrives at a time when Indian tourist arrivals are on an upswing with new direct flights into Bangkok and Phuket providing new routes and cheaper fares. This annual popular event, held from 3pm to 9pm, is jointly organised by…
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Cobra Gold troops drink blood from decapitated cobras in annual jungle ceremony
Thailand and US military forces have joined in the opening ceremony for the annual Cobra Gold military exercise. Cobra Gold is the largest biggest military exercise of its kind in the Asia-Pacific region with 29 nations taking part as participants or observers. The military activities will run until February 22, including disaster relief training, military field training and humanitarian assistance…
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Thailand’s Constitutional Court accepts case to dissolve Thai Raksa Chart
Thailand’s Constitutional Court has voted unanimously to accept the Election Commission’s ruling that the Thai Raksa Chart party be disbanded over its nomination of Princess Ubolratana as its prime ministerial candidate last Friday. The party will be given seven days to present its defence in writing before the Court deliberates on the party’s future. Meanwhile electioneering is continuing for the…
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Weather for February 15
Bangkok Partly cloudy. High 32ºC. Winds S at 15 to 25 km/h. Phuket Generally clear. High 32ºC. Winds ESE at 15 to 30 km/h. Chiang Mai Partly cloudy. High 35ºC. Winds SSE and variable . Pattaya Partly cloudy. High 31ºC. Winds S at 15 to 25 km/h. Hua Hin Generally clear. High 31ºC. Winds SSE at 15 to 30 km/h.…
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Bangkok bust seizes 180,000 fake cosmetics products
by Supachai Phetchthewee Police say they seized 180,000 fake cosmetic products with a street value approx. 300 million baht last night from five locations in Bangkok. They’ve also arrested two suspects for trying to sell the goods. Immigration Bureau chief Pol Lt-Gen Surachate Hakparn, along with secretary general of the Food and Drug Administration Dr Thares Krassanai-Rawiwong, conducted a search…
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Leaked document shows the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry planned to delay pesticide ban
The Hazardous Substance Committee may fail to reach a decision on whether to ban paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos, said Apichin Jotikashira, Industry Ministry Deputy Permanent Secretary. Apichin, who is a committee member, told environmental activists and those who claim they have been affected by agrochemicals today, that if new information about the impact of banning the herbicides and pesticides was…
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Phuket City football club has been announced
The news of the new team was announced to the press today. President of the Phuket City team, Tammawat Wongjaroenyod, says, “I love sport especially football. It is my most favorite sport. I have decided to be the president of the team as Phuket is an international tourism city. I want tourists to know more about beautiful natural places in…
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Couples get hitched in Phuket on Valentines Day
Many Thai and foreign couples have registered marriage certificates today, Valentines Day, at the Phuket District Office. The Phuket Vice Governor Prakob Wongmaneerung has present at the office where about 35 couples registered for marriage certificates when the doors opened at 10am. A Thai couple was first, followed by a foreign couple. But the Office predicts there will be at…
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Officials make arrests at three Pattaya hotels operating without licences
PHOTOS: Sophon Cable TV Bang Lamung officials, along with protection services and the Pattaya tourist police, have raided four hotels in the Pattaya area. Sophon Cable TV reports that three establishments were found to be offering daily rental without licences. Officials say they want to be able to check guests and the possibility that illegal migrants or foreign criminals were…
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