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 Long-term life in Thailand? 5 reasons private health insurance pays off in the long run
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Tuesday Covid Update: 241 deaths and 13,821 new cases
241 coronavirus-related deaths and 13,821 Covid-19 infections were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 16,737 recoveries. There are now 145,465 active cases, a decline over the past several weeks. A spokesperson for the CCSA says Thailand has “passed its peak” in the latest and most severe wave…
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CCSA says easing of restrictions could lead to more infections if public lowers its guard
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has warned that the easing of restrictions could lead to a surge in infections in the coming weeks. Spokesman Taweesin Visanuyothin says that if the public gets complacent, mid-October could see infections shoot up again. According to a Thai PBS World report, the doctor has voiced concern after seeing crowds of people at the…
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Health Ministry says don’t panic, no cases of Mu variant found in Thailand
Thailand’s Health Ministry says there have been no cases of the Mu variant of Covid-19 reported in the country to date. The World Health Organisation has named Mu – or B.1.621 – as a variant of interest, as it could be more resistant to vaccines. However, the Bangkok Post reports that Dr Supakit Sirilak from the Department of Medical Sciences…
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Emergency decree could be coming to an end as infections decline
It’s been with us since March 2020, but the emergency decree declared by the PM at the start of the pandemic may be coming to an end. According to a Bangkok Post report, Natthapol Nakpanich from the National Security Council says the government may decide not to extend the state of emergency as new Covid-19 infections continue to drop. Natthapol…
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Nakhon Si Thammarat doctor says teenager suffered from cyst, not black magic
Doctors at a southern Thai hospital in Nakhon Si Thammarat operated on a teenager to remove a cyst from her ovary. They want to reassure the public that the cyst just contained hair, bone, teeth, fingernails and an oily material, and the woman did not suffer from black magic, as some residents suspected. Sichon Hospital director, Dr Arak Wongworachat, posted…
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Monday Covid Update: Provincial totals; Thailand ‘passed its peak’
Thailand has passed its Covid-19 peak, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The number of active coronavirus cases has been on a downward trend over the past several weeks. There are now 148,622 people receiving treatment for Covid-19. The CCSA reported 187 coronavirus-related deaths today, a decline over the past month after the daily fatality count was in the…
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Pathum Thani shopping centre apologises after overcrowded vaccination event goes viral
A shopping centre in Pathum Thani, a central Thai province, has apologised for a vaccination event that went awry after large crowds packed into the shopping centre in anticipation of receiving a vaccine. The large crowds resulted in people standing right next to each other with no social distancing being observed. The vaccination event happened over the weekend at Future…
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Couple shot to death in Nakhon Si Thammarat
A couple has been shot to death in their house in the southern province Nakhon Si Thammarat. The police found the couple’s bodies last night. The duty officer from the Chulabhorn police station says they received a call about the shooting at around 9:30pm. When police and a doctor rushed to the house, they discovered 48 year old Boontham Panarat…
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25 arrested at Chiang Mai rooftop bar
A rooftop bar in Chiang Mai, a northern Thai province, was raided yesterday and 24 customers, plus the bar owner were arrested for allegedly gathering to drink alcoholic beverages, a violation of the emergency decree. Police say the 25 suspects were seen drinking alcohol and dancing to a band that was playing at the bar. The police add the suspects…
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Proof of vaccination to be required for dine-in service in “dark red” provinces
Proof of vaccination, or a negative antigen test result, will be required to eat in at restaurants in the “dark red” zones from October 1. The Bangkok Post reports that the negative test result must be no more than a week old, while people who’ve had Covid-19 must show health records that prove they’ve recovered from the virus. Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai…
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Tourism ministry wants Thailand fully re-opened, without quarantine, by January
Thailand’s Tourism Minister wants the country to re-open fully, without quarantine, by January, but says this will depend on vaccination efforts. According to a Bangkok Post report, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn is citing herd immunity as a condition for the re-opening, pointing out that Bangkok’s re-opening has been delayed from October to November, as most residents are still waiting for their second…
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Monday Covid Update: 187 deaths and 13,988 new cases
187 coronavirus-related deaths and 13,988 new Covid-19 infections were reported today by Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA has recorded 17,284 recoveries. There are now 148,622 patients being treated for Covid-19. The number of active cases has been on a downward slope over the past several weeks. In the latest…
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17 protest leaders named in complaint with Lumpini police
Legal action is being pursued by a legal activist against 17 leaders of pro-democracy protests that took place on September 3 and 4. The complaint was filed with the Lumpini police, today. The protests in question took place at the Ratchaprasong intersection and were set up by the United Front of Thammasat, the Thalu Fa group, and the Re-Dem group.…
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GPO plans quality testing on arriving Chinese Lepu antigen kits
After a rollercoaster ride of okays, protests, pauses, confirmation, cancellation, and reinstatement, 8.5 million controversial Chinese-made Covid-19 antigen test kits are set to arrive in Thailand early next week. The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation now plans on conducting quality testing on the kits made by Lepu Medical Technology with the help of Ramathibodi Hospital to reassure people of their accuracy. The…
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8.5 million antigen test kits to be distributed through 2 channels next week
The free distribution of 8.5 million rapid antigen tests kits for home use for target groups should start on September 15. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered the Ministry of Public Health and the National Health Security office to be ready for the distribution The NHSO, via Vajira Hospital and the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation, funded the obtainment of the ATKs, valued at…
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Former Deputy Attorney General faces mild disciplinary violation for role in Red Bull heir case
A former deputy attorney general is facing disciplinary action for his decision not to indict the Red Bull hier, Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya, over the fatal hit-and-run incident in 2012 where the Boss sped his Ferrari through Bangkok’s Thong Lor district and struck a police officer, killing him. Boss managed to evade justice and fled the country. The deputy attorney general’s…
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Police investigate 27 year old woman’s death in Samut Prakan
A 27 year old woman was found dead in an apartment yesterday in Samut Prakan, just southeast of Bangkok. The woman was naked, lying on a bed. Dried blood was on her face and on the pillow. And around her neck were marks, which appeared to be bruises. Police suspect she had been dead for around 48 hours. The cause…
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Samui Plus programme rakes in nearly 40 million baht
The Samui Plus Programme has raked in nearly 40 million baht in revenue following its launch in July, according to the governor of Surat Thani, Witchawut Jinto. Witchawut says the plan, which includes Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao, has brought in 918 visitors, 347 of which came through Phuket Sandbox. Despite the governor’s enthusiastic review, the programme has…
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Over 7,000 travellers fly following easing of restrictions
The Transport Ministry says thousands of travellers took to the nation’s airports to fly since the government eased lockdown measures. The ministry says that more than 7,000 flyers travelled using 14 reopened airports across 130 flights throughout the nation following the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s easing of the national lockdown that took place last week. The ministry went on…
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Sunday Covid update: 224 deaths, 15,452 new infections
224 coronavirus-related deaths and 15,452 new Covid-19 infections were reported today by Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The infection trend has declined over the past week, but the daily fatality count remains high. 4,682 patients remain in a serious condition and 1,008 are on artificial respiration as of last night. In the past 24 hours, the CCSA recorded 18,257…
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Thitisan refutes murder, argues for assault charges instead
Thitisan “Jo Ferrari” Utthanaphon, along with the other 6 police in custody now for the fatal torture of a 25 year old drug suspect, denies the charges against him and is now claiming he merely assaulted the man which led to his death. Thitisan’s lawyer met with him at Phitsanulok prison last week and dispelled rumours that his client suffered…
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Covid-19 deaths still high, infections falling, provincial totals
The daily numbers of Covid-19 infections in Thailand have remained steady around the 15,000 mark, a drop from the peak and recent daily totals well above 20,000 infections. Today’s 257 deaths still remains a high figure but is expected to ease over time. Out of 1.26 million people infected in Thailand since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, over 1…
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PM Prayut, 5 ministers win votes to beat no-confidence charge
After 4 days of intense debates in the censure proceedings that called for a vote of no-confidence for PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and 5 top ministers in his cabinet, the group all avoided the no-confidence votes. There was a lot of talk about secret political deals aligning the Palang Pracharath Party and the Pheu Thai party, along with a coalition of…
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The future of Covid vaccine ‘passports’ in access to services | VIDEO
Tim Newton speaks to Bangkok lawyer Benjamin Hart from Integrity Legal (link below). Ben is concerned at recent mutterings from the Thai government which may have insisted on proof of covid vaccines for any number of services, from simply eating to domestic travel. There is currently an instance on proof of vaccines for any provincial travel in Thailand in and…
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Japan to donate 300,000 more AstraZeneca vaccines next week
The Japanese embassy in Bangkok made an announcement today that their government will again donate AstraZeneca vaccines to Thailand. Japan donated 1.05 million AstraZeneca vaccines to Thailand at the beginning of July and have declared that another shipment of 300,000 vaccines will be forthcoming. The second shipment of AstraZeneca vaccines from Japan is slated to arrive on September 8, this…
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AstraZeneca-Pfizer mixed vaccination to debut in October
In the battle to get access to high-quality vaccines in Thailand, October is set to see an upgrade with the initiation of administering a mix of AstraZeneca and Pfizer doses for patients. The deputy director-general of the Disease Control Department said today Thailand will receive about 10 million Pfizer vaccines arriving each month beginning in October. The government now plans…
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Bangkok, Pattaya, and other destinations still planned to reopen in October
Despite Bangkok still classified as a “dark red” zone, and the Covid-19 epicentre with thousands of new infections reported each day, the capital is one of the eight tourist destinations planned to reopen to travellers on October 1. A report from Nation Thailand says the Public Health Ministry has launched preparations for the reopening. Other reopening schemes planned to start…
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Digital vaccine certificates available on MorProm app… If you can figure it out
Digital vaccine certificates for domestic travel in Thailand can be obtained through a mobile application run by the Ministry of Public Health… That is, if you can figure it out. To register on the MorProm application, you need a 13-digit ID number. For foreign residents, the number can be found on a “pink ID card” issued by the Labour Ministry, according…
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Friday Covid Update: Provincial totals; pregnant women urged to get vaccinated
271 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 12,374 with 12,280 of those fatalities recorded since April 1 in the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 in Thailand. The infection rate has declined over the past week, but the daily fatality count remains high. A spokesperson…
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A Guide to Visiting Austria in 2021
Sponsored Can Travellers Visit Vienna from Thailand? A Guide to Visiting Austria in 2021 If you’re wondering whether visiting Austria from Thailand is currently possible, keep reading… It’s safe to say global travel has been difficult over the past 18 months. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many destinations have closed their borders to many international tourists. Austria, like most other…
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