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.
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British fugitive extradited to the UK after being nabbed in Thailand last month
A British fugitive, who caused 140,000 pounds (GBP) of damage in a ram-raid in Devon, UK , has been extradited back to Britain after 18 months on the run in Thailand, following an arrest late last month. 43 year old Dylan Taylor or Torquay was found guilty of burglary in June 2018. After he absconded to Thailand, he was sentenced…
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Arrest warrants issued over Phuket building collapse which killed seven
PHOTO: Matichon Online Thalang District police yesterday issued an arrest warrant for the owner of a construction company responsible for the collapse of a building under construction in Thalang, Phuket, according to online news portal Matichon. Seven Thai and Burmese workers were killed and another two injured following the collapse of the single story concrete structure at a new petrol…
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“The greatest propaganda machine in history” – Sacha Baron Cohen slams Facebook
“The Silicon Six – all billionaires, all Americans – who care more about boosting their share price than about protecting democracy.” Speaking at the Anti Defamation League’s International Leadership summit, actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen caned Facebook and other social media as “the greatest propaganda machine in history.” Sacha was accepting an award when he opened up on his thoughts…
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Child porn website based in Chiang Mai busted
Chiang Mai police have arrested the operator of a child pornography website in a raid on his condominium in the northern city. Police and the Thailand Internet Crimes Against Children unit apprehended 24 year old Thai national Korakot Chulthong on Saturday. They also seized seized three mobile phones, a laptop computer, two portable disk drives, bank passbooks and ATM cards.…
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Two suspects in Yala’s November 5 deadly attacks, shot and killed
Authorities have shot and killed two men suspected in deadly attacks in southern Thailand earlier this month. Fifteen people, mostly volunteers, staffing a security checkpoint in Yala province were shot and killed when it was ambushed by gunmen. A day after the attacks, PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha authorised curfews in nine districts of Southern Thailand. The two suspected leaders of local insurgent cells…
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Nium partners with Visa for new instant money transfers in SE Asia
‘Nium’, a new digital cross-border payments platform, will now enable users to make real-time money transfers to Visa debit cardholders across Southeast Asia including Viet Nam. It is based on Visa’s real-time push payments solution called Visa Direct. Nium is the first fintech-based money transfer service provider in Southeast Asia to offer instant money transfer through recipients’ 16-digit Visa debit…
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German tourist dies after being hit by parasail speedboat off Phuket
PHOTO: Achadtaya Chuenniran Police are investigating the circumstances of an incident on Kamala Beach on Friday afternoon where a swimmer was killed after being struck by a speedboat used to tow paying parasail passengers into the sky. A German tourist has died after being seriously injured by a speedboat propellor while swimming off Phuket’s Kamala beach. The victim was a 63…
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Paralyzed Canadian hockey player moves legs after experimental Thai surgery
A Canadian hockey player paralyzed in a tragic bus crash has begun moving his legs after receiving experimental spinal surgery in Thailand. Ryan Straschnitzki was one of 13 injured when a truck ran a stop sign and collided with the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team’s bus in Saskatchewan in 2018. Sixteen others died in the incident. Straschnitzki was paralyzed from…
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Tourism authorities refurbish old klongs as new tourist attractions in Bangkok
Bangkok’s old nickname “Venice of the East” is slowly coming back to life as tourism and local municipal authorities aim to make-over some of the city’s famous klongs (canals) as new tourist attractions. Khlong Prawet Burirom runs east from the city towards Suvarnabhumi Airport. In May this year one of the old klongs, the King Lord Klong,was extensively refurbished and…
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British tourist locked up in ‘horror’ prison, fellow inmate dies in his arms
PHOTO: mirror.co.uk A British father of two has shared his horror story after being locked up in a Thai jail. Imprisoned for overstaying his visa, 35 year old Kai Isaacs claims a fellow inmate died in his arms following a brutal beating. The incident happened back on May 21 in the International Detention Centre, situated next door to the swanky…
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4,000 chickens buried alive in Thailand’s south
WARNING: Some readers will find the story upsetting PHOTOS: Khaosod An upsetting video was been posted online showing almost 4,000 chickens being destroyed by being buried alive. They were thrown in one by one into a pit filled with mud. Many Netizens slammed the authorities saying this is extremely cruel and questioned whether it was necessary to deal with the…
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Indian man posing as a pilot bought fake Lufthansa ID in Bangkok
PHOTO: DNA India “The passenger disclosed that he used to shoot YouTube videos on aviation and had obtained the Lufthansa fake ID card in Bangkok.” It was all going so well, until he was eventually caught. An Indian man who regularly pretended to be a pilot, in order to get free upgrades and impress women, has been arrested in Delhi…
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Fossils of new dinosaur species discovered in Isaan
The fossils of a new species of dinosaur, named the Siam Raptor Suwati, have been discovered in Nakhon Ratchasima province (commonly known as Korat) in north-east Thailand. The discovery has been confirmed by the Director-General of the Mineral Resource Department, Sommai Techawan, and former Deputy PM Suwat Liptapanlop (after whom the dinosaur has been named). Thai Residents reports that the…
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No more plastic bags at some 7 Eleven stores starting Monday
137 branches of 7 Eleven across Thailand will stop providing plastic bags from Monday as part of a trial before a nationwide ban comes into force in at the start of 2020. The Nation reports that the step is being taken in support of a government policy to reducing the use of single-use plastic. 137 branches out of 10,300 stores in…
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Chiang Mai Airshow ready to take off in February 2020
The first Chiang Mai International Airshow 2020 will be the largest event of its type in the north of Thailand and will take place from the February 21 – 23 next year. Tourism officials and the San Kamphaeng district chief held a news conference to promote an airshow that will be held in the district. The location will be the “Chiang Mai Air…
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Pattaya’s Walking Street is “heaving with tourists”. But…
PHOTOS: Pattaya City Law Enforcement Walking Street is “heaving with tourists”. Pictures posted on the “Pattaya City Law Enforcement” site indicate an encouraging sign for tourism in Thailand’s ‘sin city’ seaside resort. According to the post, it appears Pattaya’s famous soi of ‘boom boom’ is having a boom in tourism numbers. But Thai netizens say there is a backstory. Whilst…
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UPDATE: Police investigate building collapse in Phuket, killing seven
PHOTOS: Phuket Hotnews UPDATE: Kritsana Pattanachareon, deputy spokesperson for the Royal Thai Police, says that an initial investigation into the collapse of a petrol station being built in Thalang, Phuket on Thepkasattri Road, resulting in seven deaths, indicated that poor construction standards were to blame. “We were informed by police from the Thalang district station that a concrete slab being…
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Laguna Phuket Triathlon returns to the island November 23 & 24
PHOTO: lagunaphukettri.com The Laguna Phuket Triathlon returns next week with a strong pro athlete line up vying for US$20,000 (605,500 baht) prize money on Sunday, November 24. The 26th Laguna Phuket Triathlon, will comprise a 1.8 kilometre swim, a 50 kilometre bike event and a 12 kilometre run in Asia’s Laguna Phuket resort area as well as various scenic locations in…
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Girl faints on Bangkok street, wakes up in hospital with 300K missing
A Facebook User ‘โรจน์ โชว์รูม’ posted online calling for help. He relates the story that at 4.30pm on Itsaraphap Road on Monday “my girlfriend had just withdrawn 320,000 baht from a bank”. “She fainted on the road and when she regained consciousness the brown envelope with cash inside was gone. If anyone saw what happened, please contact me at 0971415777.”…
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Four Cambodian monks to be deported after raising funds around Krabi
FILE PHOTO: Bigstock Police in Krabi have arrested four monks from Cambodia after complaints from Krabi locals that the monks were attempting to raise funds at different venues as they travelled around the south. Krabi Police chief Sompong Chingduang confirmed that the four were found to have entered Thailand a week ago without the correct paperwork. The monks will now…
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China slams US bill on Hong Kong rights
PHOTO: Reuters China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi condemns the passing by US Congress of a bill designed to protect the rights of Hong Kong citizens, accusing the US of “trying to destroy Hong Kong”. The Daily Star quotes the minister as saying the bill “indulges violent criminals” and seeks to “muddle or even destroy Hong Kong” with China vowing to…
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Severe drought predicted for Thailand and neighbouring countries
FILE PHOTO Experts are warning that over the next two to three months, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam can all expect severe drought conditions which will affect agricultural production. Of the four countries, Thailand and Cambodia are expected to suffer the most, according to the report. A statement issued by the Mekong River Commission confirmed that water levels in the…
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Five Chinese awaiting deportation after being arrested in Phuket over illegal FOREX trading
PHOTO: SCMP Five Chinese are now in custody after being arrested over the running of an illegal online foreign-exchange. They were running the business from a residential housing estate in Chalong, Phuket. Phuket Immigration officers raided the rented property in the Baan Maneekram-Jomthong Thani estate in Chalong at the end of October. The five were arrested and taken to the…
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‘False killer whale’ rescued after being washed ashore in Pattaya
PHOTO: Chaiyot Pupattanapong – Bangkok Post (enhancement – The Thaiger) A large dolphin species called the False Killer Whale, resembling a black killer whale, is undergoing treatment after it was found washed ashore on a Pattaya beach on Wednesday. The Bangkok Post reports that the whale was found by a fisherman on a beach in the Bang Lamung district of…
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AoT green lights new terminal for Suvarnabhumi to double capacity
PHOTO: Artists impression of the original Suvarnabhumi terminal – Royal Thai Embassy The Airports of Thailand has approved a plan to establish a second terminal on the northern part of Suvarnabhumi Airport. The board has also agreed to discount landing fees for international charter flights at six airports under AoT control for the next five months. The AoT controlled airports are…
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500 year old temple shaken in Nan earthquake this morning
PHOTO: Tourwatthai.com The Nan province, in far north Thailand, on the Laos border, was the epicentre for an earthquake measuring 6.1 magnitude on the Richter scale. The tremor shook the province, and other parts of Thailand, at 6.50am, local time today. The US Geological Survey report that the quake struck 10 kilometres below the surface about 92 kilometres northeast of the…
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Pope Francis calls for action on exploitation of children, human trafficking
PHOTO: Government House Pope Francis was making calls for migrants to be made welcome and women and children to be protected from exploitation and abuse. The comments were made during the second day of activities for the leader of the world’s catholic church in Thailand today. The irony of the Pope’s comments would have surprised many with the Catholic Church…
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It was THAT big! Pattaya fisherman snares a REALLY big sea mammal.
PHOTO: The Nation A large dolphin species, called a “false killer whale”, was beached in Pattaya yesterday. The beaching happened after after local Jirayu Wanphusit was shore-fishing when he noticed a small tug on his line. The tug became a full on drag as the fishing rod, and Jirayu, were pulled into the water. His pursuit of the ‘best bar…
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Elderly British expat tries to save Thai man from bridge suicide attempt
A 70 year old British expat tried unsuccessfully to prevent a depressed Thai man jumping from a bridge in Pattaya yesterday. The Pattaya News reports that police were notified around 5.30pm and rushed to the scene at a pedestrian bridge on Sukhumvit Road, where a 45 year old Thai man, named by police as Boontieng Saokaew, lay injured. It’s understood that…
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Cave rescue movie opens today around Thailand
PHOTO: Director Tom Waller directing scenes from ‘The Cave’ – The Nation A movie about last year’s dramatic rescue at the Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai province opens today around Thailand. “The Cave – Nang Non” is based on “the untold true stories of some of the rescuers involved in the mega-international rescue mission that captivated the world’s attention…
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