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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HM the King expresses concern for people affected by unrest in the Deep South
(Quoted directly from the Government’s Public Relations Department) His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun has been deeply concerned about the people and officials affected by unrest in the southern border provinces. His Majesty on January 21, 2019 assigned Privy Councilor General Paiboon Koomchaya to present baskets of various items given by His Majesty to relatives of the monks killed in…
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Avengers theme park closes in Bangkok after only 7 months
Usually anything to do with the Avengers is a license to print money. But not in the case of Southeast Asia’s first Marvel Entertainment theme park. The park, constructed at the Mega Bangna Shopping Centre in south-east Bangkok, is going out of business after just seven months. Despite the fanfare when it opened in June 2018, the themed attraction didn’t…
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Mother and son killed after train collided with their pickup truck in Surat Thani
PHOTOS: fm91bkk A mother and a son have been killed after a train collided with a pickup truck in Surat Thani this morning. FM 91 Bangkok is reporting that the Tha Chana Police in Surat Thani were notified of the incident at a railway in Tha Chana. Police and rescue workers arrived at the scene where there were no barriers for…
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Weather for January 22
Bangkok Partly cloudy. High 33C. Winds ENE at 15 to 25 km/h. Phuket Partly cloudy skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. High 31C. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 km/h. Chiang Mai Plenty of sunshine. High near 30C. Winds light and variable. Pattaya A good deal of sunshine. High 32C. Winds N at 15 to 25 km/h.…
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Air quality for Thailand – January 22
Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Central Thailand Everyone may begin to experience health effects; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…
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Incentive travel the fastest growing segment in Asia Pacific events business
PHOTOS: ttrweekly.com Responding to a study that says incentive travel is the fastest growing segment in Asia-Pacific’s events business, the Thailand Conventions & Exhibitions Bureau is adapting its game plan to tap into this lucrative market. Last week, TCEB hosted the premier event, SITE’s 2019 Global Conference in Bangkok, a worldwide association dedicated exclusively to growing incentive travel. SITE’s most…
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Scoot passengers jump in to help restrain man, pilot diverts flight
A Scoot Airlines flight from Australia’s Gold Coast to Singapore had to be diverted to Sydney Airport after an incident with an unruly passenger. Flight TR7 was scheduled to reach Singapore at 3.15pm yesterday but was diverted just 1h 20 min into the eight-hour flight. Scoot has issued a statement saying that an Australian man on board punched another passenger.…
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Suspect hands himself in to police, denies charges in Saphan Hin shooting
A suspect has handed himself in to police after an arrest warrant was issued over a Saphan Hin shooting last week. The suspect is denying the charges. A Thai man was shot dead near Saphan Hin in eastern Phuket last week. An arrest warrant was issued for the suspect shortly after as police went hunting for the suspect identified by…
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Attacks in Thailand’s deep south – International coverage
Thailand’s southern insurgency, a long, protracted border and religious ‘war’, continues to rage with recent attacks getting more attention. This is partly due to the new targets with local schools getting caught in cross-fire and last Friday night’s killing of a temple abbot and another monk during prayers. The international media is now starting to provide greater coverage of one…
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Why Thailand’s election will be a win for the military – International coverage
“When Thailand officials hinted that scheduled elections to end military rule would be postponed for the fifth time in almost as many years, anger and frustration rippled through the country.” The story of Thailand’s election stumbles and rumbles is making headlines around the world, especially since the February 24 election date, mooted as THE date for most of 2018, has…
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Thai PM condemns southern violence. Urges media to be ‘careful’ covering the story.
PHOTOS: The Nation Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has responded to escalating violence in the strife-torn South today by saying that the people behind the deadly attack at a temple in Narathiwat province on Friday night were seeking to ramp up attention given to the violence in the South to the international level and lure officials into conducting “forceful suppression”. “Those…
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Legal action taken against people who removed beer cans from beer truck accident scene
PHOTOS / VIDEO: Thanakrit Asulyakul / Mana Sombat / Kanlaya Singkangrang / Kritsada Mueanhawong Legal action has already been taken against four people who ‘removed’ beer cans after a truck carrying boxes of beer cans overturned in Phuket on January 11. A logistic company representative has filed a report with police after more than 80,000 beer cans, valued at more…
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Thai Airways charges British passenger 80,000 baht for extra luggage
PHOTO: Thai Airways A British expat has been charged a whopping 79,825.13 baht by Thai Airways for extra luggage on a flight to London from Bangkok. The report was posted by Thai Visa. The incident occurred when the man in question (who is not named) was on the Thai Airways website purchasing 20kg extra luggage each way, and was quoted…
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Australian and Thai transnational drug smugglers drop the ball
PHOTO: The Nation How much heroin can you smuggle in eight (car) shock absorbers? Apparently close to 4 kilograms. A joint Thai-Australian drug suppression operation called Taskforce Storm has yielded results and arrested two transnational heroin smugglers. Police identified the two as 38 year old Canadian Stephens Blair and 27 year old Thai Pahon Sivasirikaroon. The pair were apprehended when they…
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Chiang Mai policeman caught accepting bribe on Facebook post
A Chiang Mai traffic policeman has been transferred “to inactive duties” (whatever that means) after allegedly being caught on a Facebook post accepting a 200 baht bribe from a Chinese tourist. The tourists’s motorcycle had been locked up for parking illegally. The post appears to show the policeman pocketing the 200 baht and then unlocking the tourist’s bike on Phra…
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Thailand Tourism Festival 2019 showcasing Thailand to Thais
The Tourism Authority of Thailand will host the 39th edition of Thailand Tourism Festival at Bangkok’s Lumpini Park from January 23-27. This year the festival features five ‘tourism villages’ representing different regions of Thailand plus two additional zones of activity. Central Region Zone – presents the heritage of old Siam through a traditional Thai house and the former rural way…
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‘The Cave’ due out mid year – First cave rescue film to reach cinemas
PHOTO: Thai-born director Tom Waller on location during the filming of “The Cave” in central Thailand – AFP A Thai-born director, Tom Waller, who reportedly took only a few weeks to shoot the first film about the dramatic Tham Luang cave rescue of the Mu Pa football team in Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district, says his focus was on authenticity…
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Air quality for Thailand – January 21
Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Central Thailand Everyone may begin to experience health effects; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…
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Weather for January 21
Bangkok Partly cloudy. High 33C. Winds NE at 10 to 15 km/h. Phuket Partly cloudy skies this morning will give way to cloudy skies and rain during the afternoon. High 32C. Winds N at 10 to 15 km/h. Chance of rain 70%. Chiang Mai Sunny. High 32C. Winds light and variable. Pattaya Sun and clouds mixed. High 32C. Winds NNW…
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Marine endangered species injured or killed from sea garbage every 68 hours
PHOTO: Thai Whales Over the past year, 129 marine endangered species in Thailand have been injured or killed from sea garbage, which means every 68 hours one of them has been tortured or died from ingesting our rubbish. Marine specialist Dr Thon Thamrongnawasawat says that, based on data from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources over the past year,…
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Chinese tourist drowns off Koh Samet
by Achara Wisetsri A 58 year old Chinese tourist, who got into difficulty whilst swimming off Koh Samet on Saturday, has died while being transported to a district hospital. Koh Samet is off the coast of Rayong province, east of Bangkok. Witnesses say he was “battered by waves” in the sea off Sai Kaew Beach. The victim was swimming with a…
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China edges Thailand out of Asian Cup after penalties
Thailand has gone down to China 2-1 in last night’s Asian Cup Round-of-16 match, eliminating them from the tournament. The match was decided by a penalty awarded after a foul charged against Thailand in the 72nd minute. China’s forward Gao Lin slotted home his shot to finish Thailand’s chances. The slow start to last night’s game gave way to more…
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Belarusian ‘Anastasia’ will be in Moscow detention another 3 days
Anastasia Vashukevich, aka. Nastya Rybka, the Belarusian model/sex-educator/Instagramer who spent a year in a Thai jail awaiting last week’s Court case, and was then deported, remains in a Moscow jail as of last night after the presiding judge decided to extend her detention by 72 hours. She was arrested at Moscow airport on Thursday after being deported from Thailand on…
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New 500 baht fine for drunk cycling
Up to now drink-driving cyclists have not been included in the laws governing drunk drivers of other vehicles in Thailand. But with the rising popularity of cycling as a fitness trend, that’s about to change with a new 500 baht fine if bought drunk in control of a bike. Drunk bicyclists who are currently immune to litigation because there is…
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Club raid in Bangkok. Everyone detained tested positive to drug use.
PHOTOS: The Nation Another Bangkok night spot is is being threatened with closure after an early morning raid found it open too late, unlicensed and with patrons stocked up and pumped up with illicit drugs. A team from the Provincial Administration Department and other officials raided the 56 Arena Music Hall on Charoenrat Road in Bang Kho Laem district, south…
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Bangkok Airways celebrates the arrival of its 40th aircraft
Bangkok Airways has welcome the latest Airbus A319 as the local airline’s 40th aircraft when it arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport. The event was led by Dechit Chareonwong, vice president of Flight Operations and joined by Nijjapat Piyapant, vice president of Ground Operations. This aircraft type, the latest incarnation of the short-haul A320, consists of 144 economy class seats and will serve popular…
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Top 10 countries in Asia – DataLeads report
PHOTO: Travelience “Japan is ranked the best country in Asia and fifth globally. Thailand ranks 27th globally” DataLeads reports that a survey conducted in 80 countries shows that Japan and Australia are the only Asia-Pacific countries that features in the top 10 best countries of the world. The ranking of countries is measured through factors like entrepreneurship, openness to business,…
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Bangkok smog: Sunday awakes to another day of ‘unhealthy’ air in the capital
As promised, Bangkok and the central region have been battling with enduring smog this weekend. On Friday the Thai Meteorological Department warned of smog and haze continuing over the weekend in parts of the capital and in nearby Pattaya due to a weakening cold front in the north of country, bordering Laos. Given the fingers pointing at Bangkok’s old buses,…
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UPDATE: 4000 villagers attend funeral rites for slain monks in Narathiwat
Over 4,000 villagers, including more than 300 monks from several temples in southern provinces and border provinces of Malaysia, have attended a bathing ritual for the two monks slain by gunmen who stormed Wat Rattananuparb in Narathiwat on Friday night. Read more about the raid HERE. The bathing rites for Phra Khru Prachote Rattananurak, the abbot of Wat Rattananuparb, and…
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Police hunting for driver in hit and run – Patong
WARNING: Extreme graphic content Patong Friday, January 18, 2.06am – Police are trying to locate the driver of this hit and run silver sedan in Patong. If you have any information please contact the Tourist Police or Patong Police – 1155 or 191 (Thai) VIDEO: Newshawk Phuket https://www.facebook.com/thethaigernews/videos/288527705179718/
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