Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
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Thai airline oversells tickets on domestic flight causing passengers to miss wedding
Four passengers looking forward to a wedding sadly didn’t make it in time after a Thai airline allegedly oversold tickets on a domestic flight from Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok to Udon Thani in northeast Thailand this morning. At 8am, Phaiboon Sawanprai – a subdistrict chief from Rayong province – told reporters that he had bought four valid plane tickets via…
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Thai elephant given to Sri Lanka lives unhealthy life & works hard
Animal rights protection organisation RARE Sri Lanka urges Thailand to reclaim the Thai elephant they gave them 20 years ago because the animal is suffering at the hands of its owners. RARE Sri Lanka told Thairath that the Thai elephant, Sak Surin or Mathu Raja, was given to Sri Lanka as a gift in 2001. The Thai elephant was requested…
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Firefighters fear building collapse after footwear factory fire in central Thailand
A fire raged through Summit Footwear Factory in Samut Prakan province in central Thailand for five hours last night. Firefighters closed the road in fear the building could collapse, causing ongoing congestion along the Bang Na – Trat Highway. Hundreds of employees escaped through fire exits when the blaze started around 5.30pm at the factory, which produces Aerosoft Footwear, in Bang…
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Donki drops ads on premium Thai rice after making Thais angry
Japanese supermarket Don Don Donki dropped an advertisement for premium Thai rice at one of its Bangkok branches after some Thai people got offended by the messages in the ads. A Thai man posted a picture of the price tag and an advertisement banner of some jasmine rice at the Don Don Donki Supermarket in Bangkok on Facebook on Monday,…
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THAI Airways makes resurgence with addition of nine more aeroplanes next year
THAI Airways International Plc (THAI), is making a resurgence after it says 60% of its pre-pandemic fleet has resumed service. The company says nine more aeroplanes will be in service next year as the country’s flag carrier says an increase in travel has helped the ailing carrier. Thai Smile Airways, a subsidiary of THAI has also made a resurgence as…
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Thai restaurant staff attacked by customer in the US
An American man attacked a Thai man working in a Thai restaurant in the United States last week after the establishment refused to give him free food. A reporter from KGO-TV San Francisco, Dion Lim, shared footage and details of the episode at the Thai restaurant in Berkeley, California. The incident happened on Wednesday, November 9 at about 5pm. This…
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Thailand to issue one-year visas for medical tourists
Thailand is trying to attract more rich tourists by promoting itself as a destination for medical treatment, with hospital operators such as Bangkok Dusit Medical Services and Bumrungrad Hospital among the companies expected to profit the most from the new visa. The latest attempt to lure so-called high-quality visitors comes with just as many unfathomable restrictions as previous attempts to…
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British sex offender extradited from Thailand imprisoned in Scotland
UPDATE The British man who fled to Thailand after being convicted of possessing over 60,000 indecent images of children in 2014 has been imprisoned in Scotland. On Monday, Hamilton Sheriff Court jailed 46 year old William Dempster, from Tayside, for 18 months and placed him on the sex offenders’ register. Dempster was found guilty in 2014 but absconded to Thailand…
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HelloFresh accused of using coconut milk made using monkey labour in Thailand
PETA Asia urges HelloFresh – a global meal-kit company – to “do the right thing” and stop using coconut milk made using monkey labour in Thailand. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) says HelloFresh’s coconut milk is supplied by Suree and Aroy-D, two brands that PETA says have admitted to using monkey labour in their coconut milk production.…
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Covid-19 infections up 12.8% last week
Despite everyone in Thailand – and the rest of the world – being bored of it, Covid-19 is still here. Last week, new Covid infections in Thailand rose 12.8%. The greatest leaps were seen in tourist areas and Bangkok. In the last week, an average of six people per day died of the coronavirus, while 3,166 people were admitted to…
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Fisherman finds dead dugong in Krabi
In a tragedy for Thailand’s animal lovers, a fisherman found a dead dugong in the southern Krabi province on Sunday. The fisherman found the dugong in the sea and pulled it up onto a pier. A consultant of the Krabi Fishermen Association said the dugong was a male, and around three years old. He said it weighed 100 kilograms and…
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Police search for naked tourist riding a motorcycle in public
Police officers in the north-central province of Phetchabun are searching for a Thai tourist who was featured on a viral video riding a motorcycle naked on a public road. Local News Phetchabun (ข่าวท้องถิ่นเพชรบูรณ์) posted a video of two male tourists on a motorcycle last night. The male rider wore clothes but his passenger was naked aside from a helmet and…
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Rude passport office director blames customers for system failure making them miss flights
A furious Thai woman complained at one of the nation’s passport offices in Bangkok after she paid 3,000 baht for a special express passport service but still missed her flight. More than 100 people queued at the Department of Consular Affairs in Bangkok until 7pm yesterday with several customers missing their flights because they could not get a passport on time.…
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New moves to criminalise cannabis shrugged off by Anutin
Amid moves to walk back the legalisation of cannabis, Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul shrugged off the attempt to criminalise the herb again. Anutin, who also serves as deputy prime minister, says that the debate over cannabis is decided and done. Opponents of legalisation are pushing for cannabis to be reclassified as a Type 5 narcotic, which would be…
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House fire kills family of 3 and 12 pets in central Thailand
A blazing fire engulfed a house in Pathum Thani province in central Thailand last night killing a couple, their one year old child, and 12 pets. At 1am today, officers from Thanya Buri Police Station were informed of a house fire in Pruksa Village Khlong 8 in Thanya Buri district. Police, firefighters, and rescue workers from the Por Teck Thung…
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Joe Ferrari revealed to have 1.3 billion baht in assets
By now, it is well known that disgraced and murderous Pol Col Thitisan “Joe Ferrari” Utthanaphon amassed a fortune in luxury cars and suspicious wealth. But today, the National Anti-Corruption Commission put a price tag on it: 1.3 billion baht. The staggering net worth was announced as the NACC argues a court appeal should be allowed to confiscate and liquidate his…
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Woman warns others after being stalked by creepy taxi driver
A woman driver issued a warning to others after she was stalked by a taxi driver to her home in Pathum Thani province near Bangkok. The cab driver denied the accusation saying he was hired by an unknown person to follow her. The woman, Thitichaya (surname reserved), said she was stalked by a taxi driver for over 10 kilometres. The…
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Locals queue to get access to their homes during APEC meeting
Residents and workers close to the APEC meeting location, Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC), queued up at Lumphini Police Station yesterday to get official passes to get access to the area. Yesterday was the last day Lumphini Police Station issued passes to residents or those who work in the area. Motorcycle taxis, taxi drivers, and food delivery riders were…
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Wrong spelling of ‘Welcom’ spotted on APEC banners
Thailand has made great efforts to ensure this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting goes smoothly, unfortunately, a double gaff by one of the government departments has left the nation red-faced. Dignitaries, VIPs, and visitors to the APEC Summit yesterday were greeted by banners along the Chalong Rat Expressway which read “Welcom to APEC 2022.” But that’s not all. If…
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Small earthquake shakes Chiang Rai in northern Thailand
A small earthquake struck along the Thai – Myanmar border in the Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand in the early hours of this morning, according to the Meteorological Department. No injuries or damages have been reported. At 3.38am, the department‘s Earthquake Surveillance Division reported that a 3.2 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 3 kilometres occurred in the Mae Salong…
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3 teen boys kidnapped, tortured, and forced to perform oral sex by sadistic gang
Three teen boys were kidnapped, tortured, and forced to engage in gay sex against their will at gunpoint by a sadistic gang of teenagers at a house in the Hua Mark area of Bangkok. The victims suffered burns on their penises, were forced to drink urine, take part in oral sex, and fight with each other. Only one offender has been…
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Police arrest man for sexually assaulting two street dogs in Pattaya, Thailand
A Thai man was arrested and detained for sexually assaulting two dogs last night in Pattaya, Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand. Officers from Nong Prue Police Station received a call from a warehouse security guard who said a drunk man was “committing indecent acts” on a dog near the entrance of Soi Nong Mai Kaen 12 in Pattaya’s Nong Prue…
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SpiceJet launches new direct flight between Thailand and India
Budget Indian airline SpiceJet launched direct flights between Pune in India and Bangkok in Thailand operating four days per week. SpiceJet also flies directly from Bangkok to Delhi and Kolkata. A Boeing 737 will operate the Pune – Bangkok service on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Flight SG 82 will depart from the sprawling Indian city of Pune, just south of…
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Over 200 outlaw motorcycle riders arrested in Phetchabun
More than 200 touring motorcycle riders on a philanthropic mission to help poor schoolchildren were arrested while travelling in the north-central province of Phetchabun after they broke several traffic laws and caused a public nuisance. The altruistic group, called the No Shower Trip (ทริปน้ำไม่อาบ), revealed they gathered to ride to a school in a rural area and deliver classroom equipment…
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TAT promotes Thailand on London bus
Tourism officials launched a new campaign promoting sunny Thailand in cloudy London as winter approaches. A London double-decker bus now has the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)’s “amazing THAILAND” logo written across it in pink. Beneath the logo are images of boats in the sea, with the hashtags #AmazingThailand and #AlwaysWarm, as seen in photos by Pattaya Mail. TAT’s new…
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Immigration cracks down on illegal foreigners ahead of APEC
With the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit getting underway, the Immigration Bureau is increasing security at all international airports in Thailand. The crackdown has already netted several foreign scammers hiding out within the kingdom. They are vowing increased scrutiny of those entering the country and a closer watch over suspicious foreigners who are already here. Immigration authorities have already blocked…
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Thailand’s water buffalo raising declared as global agricultural heritage system
Raising water buffalo at the Thale Noi Waterfowl Park in the southern province of Pattalung has been declared a Global Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives proposed a water buffalo raising system at the Thale Noi Waterfowl to the FAO in October last year.…
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PM calls on Thai citizens to help APEC delegates have a smooth summit
Thailand’s Prime Minister is calling on Thais to help APEC delegates have a smooth summit by being good hosts. Prayut Chan-o-cha says the kingdom is ready to host the special summit on November 18. According to Thai PBS World, Prayut asked all parties to ensure orderliness throughout the summit and its related meetings. “This is an event of national importance.”…
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FIFA says no to Thailand’s TV World Cup discount request
Thailand’s embarrassing Dickensian-like cap-in-hand approach to getting the FIFA World Cup 2022 television broadcasting license at a discounted price was met with a resounding no from FIFA. Three private companies stepped up to the plate to chip in another 400 million baht to add to the government’s 600 million baht subsidy to round up the pot to make 1 billion…
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VIDEO: Thai husband chases wife and male friend in car, car crashes
A Thai husband chased his wife and her male friend in his car on Friday, and the wife and friend ended up crashing. The incident happened in the central Chachoengsao Province. The Thai husband, 42 year old “A,” said he secretly installed a GPS in his wife’s mobile phone. A then saw that his wife, 33 year old “Ying,” was…
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