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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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Phuket focuses on foreigners causing motorbike accidents
As Thailand sees the tail end of the dreaded “Seven Days of Danger” where road accidents and death tend to spike over the new year holiday, officials in Phuket are focusing on the number of accidents involving foreigners on their roads. At this morning’s daily briefing at the Phuket Provincial Hall, officials said that foreigners on holiday renting motorbikes and…
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Famous dance teacher arrested for sexual assault allegation
Police arrested a well-known Thai dance instructor, Chutidate Thongyoo after sexual assault allegations were made by an underage teenage boy. The teacher denied the allegations. The teenager filed a complaint with the police alleging that he had been sexually harassed by the 60 year old teacher, also known as Thiam, on September 16 last year. The boy revealed he was…
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33 million baht budget for Bangkok train station sign smells like corruption
Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob smells corruption coming from a 33 million baht budget for a new sign at Bangkok‘s central train station, whose name is changing from “Bang Sue Junction” to “Bangkok Apiwat Central Station.” The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) allegedly signed a contract approving a budget of 33,169,726.39 baht for a new sign to reflect the train station’s…
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16 year old boy dies after playing Russian roulette
A 16 year old boy was found dead at an abandoned house in the Nong Chok district of Bangkok. The teenage boy’s two friends said they were playing Russian roulette and he shot himself. Officers from Lam Hin Police Station and a rescue team were notified about the shooting at 10.40pm last night and rushed to the abandoned house situated…
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Monk under fire over bizarre pebbles ritual
A monk from a temple in Chon Buri is under fire over his bizarre ritual of putting small pebbles onto the eyes of his followers. The monk believes the stones are relics of the Lord Buddha, have magical powers, and do not hurt anyone. A video and pictures of the strange ritual emerged on Facebook and TikTok. It shows 69…
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Temple new year coffin ceremony lets you be reborn
After partying hard on New Year’s Eve, many of us start the year feeling pretty dead. But for one temple on the far edges of Bangkok, they take that feeling to the next level. A New Year’s Day tradition sees temple followers crawl into coffins to invite good luck and rid themselves of bad luck for 2023. Wat Takian, in…
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Taxi driver arrested for beating a motorcycle rider with baseball bat
Police arrested a taxi driver in the Isaan province of Khon Kaen after he beat a motorcycle rider with a baseball bat and fled the scene. The victim was hit by another car as he lay on the road in the central province of Pathum Thani and remains in hospital. The taxi driver claimed he attacked the victim in self-defence.…
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Fisherman reels in body of young student in northern Thailand
A fisherman pulled ashore the body of a 21 year old woman from the Nan River in Phitsanulok province in northern Thailand this morning. At 10.30am, officers from Mueang Phitsanulok Police Station received a report that a young woman’s body was found by a fisherman on the Naresuan Bridge over the Nan river in front of Wat Ratchaburana. Police, doctors…
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Twelve vehicle crash injures 26 people in northeast Thailand
On the sixth day of Thailand‘s “Seven Dangerous Days,” a crash involving 12 vehicles on the Friendship Highway in Nakhon Ratchasima province in Isaan left 26 people injured. At 1am, officers from Nong Sarai Police Station received a report of a multiple-vehicle accident outside a dog shelter on the inbound Mittraphap Road, known as the Friendship Highway, in Pak Chong district.…
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Stolen mobile phone returned after crazy journey
A lucky tourist got his mobile phone back after leaving it in a taxi in Phuket where the driver threw it away in anger. The incident took place on New Year’s Eve, with police receiving a complaint and filing a report in the wee hours of January 1. A man from Kuwait reported leaving his phone in a minivan taxi…
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Phuket chosen as pilot province to promote organic tourism
The popular holiday resort of Phuket has been chosen as a pilot province to promote organic tourism. The Thai Organic Consumer Association (TOCA) revealed it wants to boost organic tourism in the province in an effort to connect hotels and consumers with farmers digitally and introduce incentive reward programmes. TOCA President Arrut Navaraj believes that information transparency would benefit everyone…
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Thailand – Malaysia shuttle train resumes service after bombings
The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) resumed train services between Thailand and Malaysia with the utmost security on Sunday after suspending the service for 28 days following two consecutive bombings that killed three people last month. The SRT is running two round trips per day between Hat Yai in Songkhla province to Padang Besar in Malaysia’s Perlis state. On December…
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Man arrested for stealing Royal Thai Armed Forces bus
Police arrested a man for stealing a Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) bus and driving it to Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi Airports to pick up some imaginary diplomats. Police reported the thief has a criminal history of drugs but did not reveal the result of his drug test. An officer from the Support Services Department under the RTARF filed a complaint…
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218 killed and 1,647 injured over 4-day new year holiday
According to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), 218 people were killed and 1,647 were injured in road accidents during the four-day new year holiday from December 29 to January 1. The Director of the DDPM, Boontham Lertsukheekasam, reported yesterday, January 2, that there were 1,664 road accidents across the country during the holiday break, causing 218 deaths and…
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Young British woman ‘may never walk again’ after fall from balcony in Thailand
A young British tourist is seriously injured and remains in hospital in Thailand after falling from a balcony on the popular party island of Koh Pha Ngan. Maddi Neale-Shankster, a 21 year old beautician from Coventry in England, suffered a fractured spine and is receiving treatment to drain fluid from her chest following the accident. The beautician travelled to Thailand with…
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Thai restaurant develops Flu-Shot Soup to prevent flu and Covid-19
A Thai restaurant in the United States has cooked up a tasty dish to feed its hungry customers and at the same time found a remedy to prevent them from getting flu and Covid-19 – Flu-Shot Soup! The family-owned Thai restaurant, Taste of Thailand, in Denver, Colorado, developed the special recipe some 20 years ago but it only came to…
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Banks deny wrongdoing in Jeffrey Epstein lawsuit
Two major banks are denying any legal responsibilities in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking after two victims filed lawsuits against them. American bank JPMorgan Chase and German-based Deutsche Bank requested that the federal court drops the suit that claims the banks should have known of Epstein’s illegal sexual escapades and therefore bear some responsibility for the abuse that occurred. Epstein was…
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CNN needs geography lesson after mistaking Taiwan for Thailand
United States-based news platform CNN needs a geography lesson after confusing Taiwan for Thailand, or more specifically, Taipei for Bangkok. The multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, confused Thailand for Taiwan several times during their live broadcast countdown to New Year’s Day CNN Hong Kong reporter Kristie Lu Stout asked her Taiwan counterpart in Taipei, Will Ripley, how…
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Electric vehicles to hit the accelerator this year, says FTI
The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) predicts a bold future for Thailand’s electric vehicle (EV) industry, unlike the International Monetary Fund which believes the kingdom is heading for a recession. The FTI reckons the EV industry will hit the accelerator this year and sell between 25,000, to 35,000 cars, reports Bangkok Post. But, to achieve that target the EV industry…
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5 Things You Need to know before Befriending or Dating a Thai
In this episode of This is Thailand, Natty Warisa will share with you 5 top cultural tips that a non-Thai would need to know before befriending or dating a Thai person. Thailand is the most conservative country and abides by a unique set of unwritten rules. Listen till the end to find out what all of the quirky Thai customs…
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Speaker predicts mass election corruption
Thailand’s House Speaker Chuan Leekpai warned that the country can expect to see mass corruption in the upcoming general election. He said on Sunday that money will be a powerful influence in this year’s election and vote-buying will be rampant. To support his claim, Chuan points to the amount of campaigning that has been going on in the southern provinces…
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Thailand’s new fighter jets still on horizon
It will be the middle of this year before Thailand’s Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) knows whether or not Washington has approved the sale of F-35A Lightning II fighter jets. RTAF Commander-in-Chief, ACM Alongkorn Wannarot said the air force was still negotiating preparations for the purchase of the jets, but the sale has yet to be approved by Washington. The…
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Chinese tourists banned from entering Morocco
Thailand may have stretched out its welcoming arms to China but the same can’t be said of other countries, especially Morocco which has banned all mainland tourists from entering the African country. Thailand Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn on Saturday was quoted as saying that his ministry was “very pleased to learn that China will implement new border control…
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Proposed national uniforms to make traffic police approachable
The Deputy National Police Chief of Thailand recognizes that the Thai police have a reputation issue. He wants to take action to make police seem more approachable, friendly and organized. To do so, he’s calling for a change to the uniform the traffic police wear. After travelling around the country and inspecting police stations in various locations, he found that the…
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HTMS Sukhothai chief engineer ashore when disaster struck
As the crew of the doomed HTMS Sukhothai headed for Chumphon on December 18, the ship’s chief engineer was not among them. According to Vice Admiral Pichai Lorchusakul, commander of the First Naval Area Command Saturday, the Sukhothai was heading for Chumphon on December 18 without its chief engineer on board. The ship has a normal complement of 106, but the…
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Thailand makes another travel list: Fodor’s No List
Thailand boasted recently of its ranking on many travel lists, from being among the least corrupt countries in Asia to ranking one of the best locations for expats, and rating one of the safest countries to visit. The country has made the ranks by having some of the top-rated food and beaches in the world. But Thailand also received a…
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Deputy PM’s cunning plan to remain in power? There isn’t one
Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon has a cunning plan to remain in power. The plan is so cunning that there is no plan. No, it’s not an episode of Blackadder. Deputy PM Prawit reckons the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) will remain in office after the May 7 election this year without having to woo the electorate. The Pheu Thai Party was out…
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Tragic hero – lifeguard, 10 year old, drowned in new year beach tragedy
The body of a 10 year old girl who had been swept away by strong waves from a Songkhla beach, was found washed ashore this morning, near the scene of the new year beach tragedy. Rescue teams searched the area throughout last night and this morning for the lost child who was washed away as she was playing with two…
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Indian passengers to be charged over air rage incident on Bangkok-Kolkata flight
Police in India reported that two of the men involved in the air rage incident on a flight from Bangkok to Kolkata will be charged. Bidhannagar City Police, in Kolkata, drew up a First Information Report and slapped an Indian Penal Code charge on the men of assault, wrongful restraint, and criminal intimidation, after a complaint by the Bureau of…
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Phuket Lifestyle Comparison: Living in the Northern vs. Southern Areas of Phuket
https://youtu.be/njQz_WMMOzI Welcome to the beautiful island of Phuket! With its stunning beaches, crystal clear waters, and vibrant culture, it’s no wonder why so many people come to visit or live in Phuket. But when it comes to choosing where to stay on The island, there are two main areas: The north & the South. In this video, we’ll explore the…
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