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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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Sponsored Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand
Moving to Thailand offers a prospect full of excitement and adventure, but in the same vein, if any injuries were to occur (and god forbid it does), the local healthcare system can be confusing at first glance for many expats...
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Insurgent bomb derails train in Songkhla
A train was derailed in the deep south of Thailand, and security officials believe it was a result of a bomb set off by southern insurgents. Train number 707 was making a short run from Hat Yai to the border town of Padang Besar in the Sadao district in the southern province of Songkhla. The train was a freight train,…
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Fire at Bangkok’s CentralWorld mall sends shoppers scurrying (video)
A fire broke out at Bangkok’s CentralWorld mall Saturday afternoon. A small fire broke out in Groove, the mall’s semi-outdoor dining area, around 4.15pm. Coughing shoppers were forced to flee along smoke-filled corridors. Fire 🚒🔥 alert at #ctw #centralworld #เซ็นทรัลเวิร์ล , please go outside in safe area 🙌 pic.twitter.com/cIlNRXJd2r — @chai_prod (@chai_prod) December 3, 2022 Firefighters were quickly at the…
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Disruptive Phuket-bound passenger thrown off flight in Karachi
A disruptive Phuket-bound passenger on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul was thrown off the aircraft yesterday and arrested after the flight diverted to Pakistan’s Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. After the passenger was taken into custody by local law enforcement, the flight continued to Phuket. Turkish Airlines flight TK-172 on an Airbus A330 diverted to Karachi three hours into the…
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Anutin responds to photo of cannabis smoking kids on Pattaya Beach
Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul has responded after photos of a group of 10 year olds smoking cannabis from a bamboo bong on Pattaya Beach went viral on social media. The legalisation of cannabis came with very little regulation, but a prohibition on sales or consumption by anyone under 20 years old was put in place almost immediately. Anutin has been…
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Phuket welcomes 6,730 flights in December
High season has arrived in Phuket, as the airport schedule lists 6,730 flights this month. The average number of flights per day throughout the month of December will reach 217, up from about 200 in November. (The busiest day in November saw 219 flight land with 10,467 passengers arriving.) Some 3,000 of those flights are international arrivals, while 3,730 flights…
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Thailand tourism predicted at 80% of pre-Covid in 2023
Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor Yuthasak Supasorn just predicted that next year, revenue from tourism will hit 80% of the level it was before the Covid-19 pandemic. He made the bold prediction at the 22nd World Travel and Tourism Council Global Summit, being held in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh. At that summit, the TAT was invited to take…
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Child Protection Foundation leader faces child labour charges
Authorities in Thailand are claiming there’s a fine line between protecting children and exploiting them. Amphawa District Police in the Samut Songkhram province filed human trafficking charges against the Secretary-General of the Child Protection Foundation. The foundation has protected the rights of children, but charges accuse them of using those children as labour in a resort owned by Secretary-General Montri…
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Red-Bull hit-and-run prosecutor dismissed
Red-Bull hit-and-run prosecutor Chainarong Saengthong-aram has been dismissed by the Public Prosecutors Commission. The former senior prosecutor at the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) was discharged after tampering with evidence in the case involving Red Bull heir Vorayuth Yoovidhya. An initial report showed that Vorayuth was driving his Ferrari at 177 kilometres per hour when he hit and killed…
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Pheu Thai Party under fire as Tuhao-Shinawatra connection exposed
Opposition Pheu Thai Party is under fire after police found that many houses connected to suspected Chinese gangster Chaiyanat “Tuhao” Kornchayanant were built by a company owned by the Shinawatra family. The Pheu Thai Party is the third incarnation of the party founded by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2007. On Wednesday, the Royal Thai Police raided 11 locations…
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Bullets-in-bag Israeli given 18 months in Thailand
The bullets-in-bag Israeli police officer was handed an 18-month jail sentence on Friday for arriving in Thailand with a deadly cargo of live ammunition. Gal Shmuel Farjun was arrested in October at Phuket Airport with two loaded magazines in his suitcase. The 29 year old claimed to have left the bullets in his bag “by accident.” The Israeli Foreign Ministry…
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Thai baht soars to six-month high against US dollar
The Thai baht opened at 34.78 against the US dollar today, strengthening from yesterday’s close of 35 to a six-month high. The baht’s sudden rise is down to the Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) hiking the policy rate by a quarter point earlier this week. The BOT remains committed to a gradual monetary tightening policy, raising the policy rate from 1%…
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Motorcycle taxi riders rally against unlicensed ride-share app drivers in Pattaya
Over 100 Pattaya motorcycle taxi riders showed up at Pattaya City Hall yesterday to make some noise about unlicensed ride-share app drivers. The motorcycle taxi riders are calling for a crackdown, saying that these unlicensed drivers are stealing their passengers. In an open letter to Pattaya Deputy Mayor Wuttisak Rueimkitkan, the riders accused app drivers of: Not having had their…
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World Cup broadcasting soap opera drama rumbles on
The FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar broadcasting soap opera continues to provide drama. In this week’s episode, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) is demanding the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) return the 600 million baht it handed over because it can’t fulfil its World Cup broadcasting agreement. The long-drawn-out melodrama appeared to have reached a conclusion when Thailand…
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Police arrest weight loss pill executive for causing 4 deaths in Thailand
A dietary supplement executive was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand, yesterday after four people died from taking his company’s weight loss pills. Police arrested 50 year old Nuttawat outside a condo in the Huai Kwang district under an arrest warrant issued by Kanchanaburi Provincial Court on January 18, 2022, for, “secretly adding a substance to food, medicine or other edible products…
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Phang Nga officials find more leatherback turtle eggs
Turtle nesting season is well on its way in Phang Nga. Phang Nga officials found more leatherback turtle eggs, after finding over 118 of them on the same beach last month. On Wednesday, officials from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) said they found more nests on Bang Khwan Beach, about 500 metres from the previous nest. However, the…
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Fireworks to dazzle Bangkok’s Chao Phraya River area on New Year’s Eve
Bangkok fireworks lovers have a new treat awaiting them on New Year’s Eve. Fireworks will dazzle the capital’s Chao Phraya River area during the countdown. Bangkok’s largest shopping mall, ICON SIAM, is hosting the event, Amazing Thailand Countdown 2023, at Icon Siam River Park on December 31. The event’s theme is “win the world for Thailand.” The firework displays will be…
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Thai VietJet cancels Phuket – Bangkok flight last minute over 1 extra passenger
Budget airline Thai VietJet cancelled a flight from Phuket to Bangkok minutes before take-off last night because staff couldn’t find a seat for one passenger. The plane was already taxiing on the runway ready to depart. Flight vz2305 to Bangkok was scheduled to depart from Phuket at 8.25pm. More than 300 passengers boarded and the plane began taxiing down the runway…
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Thailand’s top cheesemaker toasts his own success
When Thailand’s top cheesemaker Jarutat Snidwongse Na Ayuthaya decided to make cheese for a living, he didn’t find much support. His family and friends doubted that was a market for Chiang Mai cheese. Thailand’s unique cuisine doesn’t find much space for dairy. Sixteen years on, and things could hardly be better in the small but perfectly formed Thai cheese cottage…
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New details unfolding over alleged assault by Pattaya loan sharks
UPDATE New details are unfolding around a Pattaya woman who on Monday, November 28 alleged that loan sharks had abducted and assaulted her. The woman, 21 year old Tasneeporn Youngram, said that four loan sharks forced her into a car on Soi Paniad Chang in Bang Lamung. She said they then brought her to a deserted road, where they beat…
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Family of man who died after a hair transplant warns others to avoid cowboy clinics
The family of an Indian man who died from a hair transplant (HT) urges others to avoid cowboy clinics offering too good-to-be-true low-cost procedures. Balding Indian television executive Athar Rasheed decided to get an HT last year only for it to end fatally. The 30 year old wanted to improve his appearance, boost his confidence, and look younger, as many…
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7-Eleven stores introduce digital govt service channel for Thais
A new digital channel is being introduced in 7-Eleven stores to make it easier for residents in Thailand to access government services. The Digital Government Development Agency (DGA) is using a technology integrator Counter Service to create a new channel to verify and issue digital IDs for citizens. The DGA reckon the systems will make it easier for people to…
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Motorbike taxi driver wins 12 million baht lottery jackpot in Thailand
A “win” motorbike taxi driver from Samut Prakan province, just south of Bangkok in Thailand, won 12 million baht (US$345,050.76) in the lottery yesterday. Ek – who works in the King Kaew area of Bang Phli district – revealed that he chose the winning lottery number 375805 using the age of his ex-wife who sadly passed away just one week ago.…
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Tourists flock to famous market in Koh Samui
Tourists are flocking to a famous market in Koh Samui for its mouthwatering food. The vice president of the Tourism Council of Thailand said the tourists are loving the Pad Thai, papaya salad (Somtam), and grilled chicken at The Wharf Samui. The market opens every Wednesday and Friday from the late afternoon until late night. Tourism Council Vice President Wiwat Chuenban…
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9 year olds smoke cannabis on Pattaya Beach in Thailand
Netizens are concerned about the safety of children after pictures of a group of 9 and 10 year olds smoking cannabis from a bamboo bong on Pattaya Beach in Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand, went viral on social media. Thailand delisted cannabis as an illicit narcotic in June to allow the public to utilise the plant’s medicinal properties. But without…
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Thailand’s Board of Investment unveils transformation plans
Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI) has come up with new ways to attract more investment into Thailand. The board’s target is an easy-to-swallow group of companies dubbed “smart and sustainable” according to Bangkok Post. The government’s effort to create a “new” economy in Thailand is focused, like almost every other Asian nation, on buzzwords. The board’s chosen buzzwords are “innovation”…
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Pattaya Walking Street gunman surrenders claiming it was ‘friendly fire’
A Pattaya Walking Street gunman surrendered to police, allegedly claiming that the incident was one of “friendly fire.” But, his friends may not be thinking the same as they are currently injured. The suspect insisted that he was friends with the men he shot and felt really sorry for them as he called the shooting an accident. According to The Pattaya…
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China’s great firewall breached as zero-Covid policy protesters access Twitter, Telegram
China’s great firewall has been breached as zero-Covid policy protesters are accessing Twitter and Telegram in record numbers. According to SensorTower, Twitter’s downloads increased from 150th rank to ninth rank among all the free iOS apps in China at the end of November. As the nation’s zero-Covid restrictions sparked a rare uproar among residents, the government’s censors have largely silenced…
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Driving licence point deductions starting next year in Thailand
Driving licence point deductions will start next year in Thailand to help curb traffic violations and dangerous driving. Starting January 9, 2023, the Royal Thai Police and Land Transport Department will enforce the demerit point system. Each driving license holder will be given 12 points to start with but will be deducted for each violation they are caught committing. The…
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Phuket officials once again report finding no human trafficking on fishing boats
Phuket officials reported once again they found no evidence of human trafficking on fishing boats. Officials conducted a series of random interviews at Rassada Pier in the main city district yesterday. They inspected a total of seven boats with 249 workers. Some 117 workers were Thai, and 130 were from Vietnam and Laos. Officials confirmed that they did not discover…
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South Korea increases quota of Thai workers next year
South Korea is increasing its quota of Thai workers next year from 2,500 to 15,000, but there’s a catch. Thais interested in filling the positions must learn Korean and pass a language test. Prime Minister Office spokesperson Anucha Burapachaisiri reported today that the Thai Labour Minister, Suchart Chomklon, discussed the quota of Thai workers in South Korea with the Korean…
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