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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Covid UPDATE Friday: 2,631 new cases and 31 deaths, provincial totals
2,631 new Covid-19 cases and 31 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Since April 1, the latest wave of infections in Thailand, the CCSA has recorded 143,116 Covid-19 infections and 1,083 deaths. In total, there have been 171,979 Covid infections and 1,177 Covid-related deaths reported in Thailand since the pandemic started last year. Of the…
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Scrutiny over public and media idolising of suspect Uncle Phol
Following the arrest of Chaiphol Wipha, known as Uncle Phol to murdered 3 year old ‘Nong Champoo’, his elevation in the media to celebrity status is receiving criticism. He’s been a prime suspect in the murder for over a year, but a warrant was issued June 1, he surrendered yesterday, and is now in police custody. At first, the media…
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Pro-PM Prayut public relations campaign draws criticism
In what critics believe to be an ill-conceived plan, the Prime Minister Operations Centre has launched a campaign to tell people to lay off the criticism of Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. In a charm offensive to encourage Thais to think “the PM is cool, so just chill out”, critics say the PR campaign has across as “aggressive and pompous”. The…
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Covid-19 vaccination to be delayed in provinces with low infection rates
Several Thai provinces with low infection rates have had to delay their Covid-19 vaccine rollout after receiving fewer doses than expected. The Bangkok Post reports that the Public Health Ministry has cut the vaccine allocation of provinces that have reported substantially lower infection rates. However, Kiattiphum Wongrajit from the Health Ministry says 2 million doses of both Sinovac and the…
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PM to chair meeting on Thailand’s re-opening as Phuket officials demand clarity
The Centre for Economic Situation Administration will today discuss plans for the revival of Thailand’s tourism sector at a virtual meeting chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. Attendees will discuss a future quarantine-free re-opening of 10 provinces considered popular tourist destinations: Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Phetchaburi, Chon Buri, Phuket, Surat Thani, Krabi, Phang Nga, and Buriram. While Phuket is…
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New oversight committee chair vows to review Red Bull heir case
Phachorn Yutthithamdamrong is the new chairman of a committee that oversees Thailand’s public prosecutors and he has set his sights on an infamous 2012 case involving the grandson of the co-founder of the Red Bull empire. Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya fled Thailand years ago but has never been prosecuted after allegedly killing a police officer while drunk and speeding in the…
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Monk killed in hit and run
Phra Charan, a 70 year old monk, was killed in a hit in Bangkok, yesterday. Phra had been a monk for years at the Wat Son temple. 30 metres from the monk’s body pieces of a “black car” were recovered, presumably from the car that struck Phra. When rescue workers arrived at the scene they found Phra’s head and leg…
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Siam Bioscience declares AstraZeneca vaccine ready to deliver
Much anticipated news came from Siam Bioscience yesterday, as the company announced that they are ready to begin deliveries of the AstraZeneca vaccine to the Thai government. The company was scheduled to provide over 60 million vaccines over the course of the year. The welcomed announcement came amidst frequent reporting of problems and delays in the production of the Covid-19…
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Covid UPDATE Thursday: 3,886 new infections and 39 deaths, provincial totals
3,886 new Covid-19 cases and 39 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA. Since April 1, the latest wave of infections in Thailand, the CCSA has recorded 140,485 Covid-19 infections with more than 40,000 of those infections in Bangkok. The capital is still recoding nearly 1,000 new cases each day. Phuket, racing towards its July 1 ‘reopening’ reported another 6…
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Motorcycle club donates 40,000 face masks, hand sanitiser to Pattaya prison
Yesterday, the Mini Siam Motorcycle Club Pattaya donated 40,000 face masks and 40 bottles of hand sanitiser to the Pattaya Remand Prison. The donation was led by Mr Thada Boonpan. “There are many confirmed cases of Covid-19 at prisons in Bangkok and other provinces, although Pattaya Remand has so far been spared. We want it to stay that way. We…
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11 million Sinovac doses to arrive in Thailand over the next 3 months
Over the next 3 months, Thailand will import 11 million doses of China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine. The locally-produced AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is the primary vaccine planned for Thailand’s mass coronavirus immunisation campaign. Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul says the additional Sinovac doses will help reach the goal of obtaining 100 million doses. So far, Thailand has received 5.5 million doses…
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Phuket bust nabs 2 men with drugs valued at 5.3 million baht
2 men in Phuket town were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly possessing methamphetamines and crystal valued at around 5.3 million baht. The men allegedly had 14,000 methamphetamine pills (also known as yaba, which roughly translates to “crazy drug”) and about 3 kilograms of crystal meth (also known as ice, tina, or speed). The news of their arrest was announced at…
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US Deputy Secretary of State pledges Covid-19 aid
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha met with United States Deputy Secretary of State Wendy R. Sherman yesterday to discuss the Covid-19 vaccine situation. The US representative acknowledged Thailand’s struggle to procure and distribute vaccines to everyone in the country, observing that many countries are grappling with similar issues. She declared that the US has been pursuing a policy of procuring excess supplies…
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Police seize clouded leopard rug after it was posted for sale on Facebook
Police seized a rug made from wildcat fur last week after it was posted for sale on Facebook for 7,500 baht. The rug appears to be from a clouded leopard and investigators now suspect it may have come from one of the two clouded leopards recorded on hidden camera in a rare sighting last December at the Erawan National Park in…
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Lat Phrao shopping centres insist they are not the source of new Covid clusters
Central Plaza Lat Phrao, Imperial World, and Union Mall located (mostly) in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district, deny they are the shopping centres the CCSA was referring to on Wednesday when the CCSA said there was a “Covid cluster from a mall”. The confusion stems from the fact that the CCSA did not specify which mall was responsible for the cluster.…
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Patong Thieves cite unemployment for theft
Yesterday morning in Patong, a town in Phuket, 2 men, 42 year old Samran Luiprasert and 34 year old Amphon Boonchuaynamphon, were arrested by Patong police for stealing a coffee machine and 2 televisions from a restaurant. The men said they needed money to survive. In the police report, it was said the alleged criminals were found after the owner…
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PM moved vaccine funds from Health Ministry to Central Fund in case of “urgent need”
The PM has been re-jigging the government coffers, saying he transferred funding for Covid-19 vaccines from the Health Ministry to the Central Fund – in case of urgent need. Prayut Chan-o-cha was addressing MPs yesterday, the last day of a 3-day debate on the 3.1-trillion-baht national budget for 2022. In particular, the PM was responding to criticism from the coalition’s…
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American suspect in Bangkok kidnap for ransom case arrested at airport
Police arrested an American man, another suspect in the kidnap for ransom case in Bangkok, at the Suvarnabhumi Airport just as he was preparing to leave the country. 38 year old Matthew Wilson is the tenth suspect to be arrested for alleged involvement in the abduction of a Taiwanese businessman after a failed business deal. Other suspects include 2 other American…
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Thailand’s quarantine hotels consider move to hybrid model
Hotels currently operating as alternative state quarantine facilities are considering moving to a hybrid model, as bookings drop ahead of Phuket’s re-opening. ASQ hotels say reduced demand means they may adopt a model whereby they accept both quarantining guests and regular guests from the second half of the year. Prin Pathanatham from the ASQ-ALQ Club Thailand says bookings have started…
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Vaccination of foreigners kicks off next week
It’s the moment you’ve all – okay, many of you – have been waiting for. The Thai government says that from Monday, foreigners living in the Kingdom who have registered for Covid-19 inoculation, will start to receive the vaccine. It’s been a long road of anxiety, confusion, and chaos to get to this point and there are probably many who…
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Another 700 7-Eleven stores to open across Thailand
The operator of the 7-Eleven chain of convenience stores has confirmed it will open another 700 shops in the Kingdom this year. According to a Bangkok Post report this morning, CP All plans to spend between 11.5 and 12 billion baht on expansion in 2021. The company has opened 155 new 7-Eleven stores so far this year, meaning there were…
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Courts order ISPs block 8 users from web, social media
Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiwut Thanakhamanusorn confirmed today court orders instructing internet service providers to block or remove 8 users the government says used social media or their own websites to post fake news. The ISPs met with the ministry to receive the court order to block the users. The court ordered the ISPs to either remove or block…
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WHO assigns alternative names for Covid variants based on Greek alphabet
After criticism over naming new variants of Covid-19 based on the country it was first detected, the World Health Orginisation has announced alternative names for the “variants of concern” based off the Greek alphabet… Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, etc. Last week, media outlets in the UK released reports last week saying more than 100 people had tested positive for the…
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ONCB to investigate transnational drug trafficking operations with routes in Thailand
Following the news of the Thai national arrested in South Korea for allegedly smuggling methamphetamine into the country, Thailand’s Office of Narcotics Control Board is now investigating transnational drug trafficking operations with routes in Thailand. Thailand’s Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin ordered for the investigation, advising authorities to investigate to see if drug traffickers in Thailand have been involved in operations…
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Arrest warrant issued for murder suspect who became a minor celebrity during the investigation
A murder suspect, who became famous in Thailand during the investigation, now has a warrant for his arrest over the death of his 3 year old niece. With the continuous and overdramatised media coverage on the case, the 44 year old suspect Chaiphol Wipha became a minor celebrity and gained a fan base, some who have raised donations to help…
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Health Minister confident AstraZeneca doses will arrive on time
Thailand’s Public Health Minister says the delivery of 6 million doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is on schedule. Anutin Charnvirakul says the doses are expected to arrive in batches, throughout the month of June, and he’s confident the first lot will be here by June 7, when the national rollout begins. “I’m confident the first lot will be put…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 3,440 new cases and 38 deaths
3,440 new Covid-19 cases and 38 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Since April 1, the latest wave of infections in Thailand, the CCSA has recorded a total of 136,599. Out of the new cases, 1,087 were detected in correctional facilities. Thousands of inmates at more than a dozen Thai prisons have contracted the…
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Thai Navy stands by decision to purchase 3 Chinese tanks
A spokesman yesterday defended the Royal Thai Navy’s decision to buy 3 Chinese tanks, while the country struggles to purchase an adequate supply of Covid-19 vaccines. According to a Bangkok Post report, Navy spokesman Chettha Chaipiam says the purchase was agreed prior to the arrival of the pandemic. He points out that, the 398-million-baht agreement was signed during the 2020…
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Countries push back against being associated with variants, new system may be coming soon
It is one thing to hear a foreign country be connected to the name of a virus, it’s another thing when it’s your country. It feels personal. Last week, many Thais were incensed to have their country associated with a Covid variant. Likewise, the Indian government has called for having all references to the “Indian Variant” scrubbed from social media. They…
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Thai Brewers Association asks for reprieve from alcohol ban
Yesterday, the Thai Brewers Association delivered a petition to the CCSA and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration asking them to reverse the ban of alcohol sales in restaurants, bars as the ban has been harmful to their businesses and they have not been given any other options. The statement reads: The Thai Brewers Association truly understands the goodwill and purpose of…
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