Thailand News
Discover the most recent and relevant news from across Thailand on The Thaiger’s National News page. Covering a wide range of topics, including politics, business, crime, and lifestyle, our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
Stay informed about the latest developments in Thai society, economy, and culture, as well as updates on travel, tourism, and expat life. With The Thaiger, you’ll never miss out on the essential news that matters to you.
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Sponsored Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand
Moving to Thailand offers plenty of excitement and adventure, but the local healthcare system can be complex to navigate as an expat. From unique health risks to high costs at private hospitals, having a comprehensive health insurance plan is essential....
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No breathalyser test for Phuket resort owner after crash, police say he didn’t smell like alcohol
Police did not test the alcohol levels of the well-known owner of the Sri Panwa luxury resort in Phuket after he lost control of his Bentley, crashing into a steel barrier and causing the car to flip multiple times before it set on fire. The owner of the five-star resort had crashed another car almost exactly a year prior and…
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Body of Burmese fisherman found in oil tank in southern Thailand’s Surat Thani
The body of a Burmese fisherman was found in an oil tank on a fishing boat docked in the southern province of Surat Thani. The tank was on a fishing boat where the man had worked which was found by a painter who was going to clean and paint the boat’s engine room. He tried to move the tank out…
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Monday Covid Update: 24,635 new cases; provincial totals
81 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 24,880 with 3,182 of those fatalities since the start of this year. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 24,635 new Covid-19 cases and 25,753 recoveries. There are now 250,737 people in Thailand being treated for Covid-19. Out of…
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Tangmo: Senators warn police to store speedboat ‘properly’
Store the boat properly, you dummies! That’s the key takeaway, after senators visited the police headquarters in Muang district of Nonthaburi last week, where they found police had not been properly storing a key piece of evidence — the speedboat that drowned actress Nida “Tangmo” Patcharavirapong allegedly fell from. Members of the Senate committee on human rights, liberty and consumer…
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Officers investigate death of elderly American expat in Pattaya
Police in Pattaya are investigating the death of an 80 year old American man who was found lying in bed with a plastic bag covering his head. Officers also note that the door to the safe was left open. Investigators will review surveillance camera footage from the condominium to determine if anyone entered his room. The elderly expat had lived…
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Thai airlines urged to inspect all Boeing 737-800 aircraft following crash in China
After a Boeing 737-800 crashed in China, killing all 132 passengers on board, Thailand’s aviation officials have urged five Thai airlines to conduct thorough safety inspections of their 26 Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Leading domestic airlines, including Nok Air and Thai Lion, must obtain a Certificate of Airworthiness for all operational 737-800s, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand. China Eastern…
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Hospitals warned to treat Covid patients or risk being delisted by Social Security Office
Thailand’s Social Security Office has warned that hospitals that refuse to treat Covid-19 patients risk being removed from its list of contracted medical facilities. Boonsong Thapchaiyuth, SSO secretary-general, says he’s instructed private hospitals to adhere to the regulations and offer full treatment to members of the social security fund registered at those hospitals. According to a Bangkok Post report, the…
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Finance Ministry expected to adjust 2022 economic forecast from next month
The Finance Ministry will adjust the 2022 forecast for Thailand’s economic growth to focus on the rise in both inflation and energy prices, from next month. According to an unnamed Bangkok Post source, the ministry is concerned about the impact Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will have on overseas arrivals this year. At the start of the year, the ministry had…
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In Thailand, Move Forward candidate more popular than Prayut in PM poll
While the largest percentage of Thais, 27.6%, said they were “yet to see anybody suitable for the post of Thai PM, Move Forward Party candidate 41 year old Pita Limjaroenrat is slightly ahead of current PM Prayut. 13.4% of respondents prefer Pita, while 12.7% prefer Prayut. This means that Pita is now the country’s most preferred candidate, followed by Prayut, then…
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Getting a motorcycle taxi in Bangkok, or anywhere in Thailand
We’ll start off by stating that there is nothing quicker and more efficient than getting a motorcycle taxi around Bangkok, compared to just about any other form of transport. We’ll also admit that there are dangers involved with riding on a motorcycle or motorbike around Thailand, especially if you’re not wearing a helmet (which you can ask the rider for).…
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Foreigner in Pattaya bleeding after alleged altercation with security
A foreign man in Pattaya was left bleeding from several serious injuries in what witnesses say was an altercation with security. The witnesses found the man lying on the ground in the middle of Pratumnak Soi 5. The altercation allegedly happened at night in front of a ‘restaurant’ there. As the man lay on the ground, a few other foreigners…
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Drug abuse in Bodybuilding in Thailand | The Dark Side of Fitness
Fitness craze is real. Body builders from around the world love to travel to Thailand to work out. Sometimes, to abuse the easy access drugs with no repercussions in Thailand. In this episode Jay sits with fitness expert Walter Veale to learn more about the drug abuse in the fitness world in Thailand.
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Gas pipe falls on Rayong construction worker, kills him
A gas pipe fell on a construction worker in Rayong yesterday, killing him. A backhoe that was supposed to lift the pipe couldn’t handle the pipe’s weight, and the pipe fell into a ditch where three workers were connecting gas pipes. Two workers managed to jump out and narrowly escape, while one did not. The pipe fell on him, and…
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2 people per hour were killed in road accidents in Thailand in 2020
A Thai health foundation has found that two people were killed in road accidents every hour in Thailand in 2020. The total number of people killed in road accidents throughout that year was 17,831. The foundation, Thai Health Promotion Foundation, said motorcycle drivers and riders made up the 74% of fatalities. The International Health Policy Program said in its report…
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Punishment for ‘Joe Ferrari’ seven police will be decided June 8
Thailand’s Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases will decide punishment for the seven so-called ‘Joe Ferrari’ police on June 8. The seven former police officers allegedly suffocated a drug suspect to death with a plastic bag. They face four charges: malfeasance, abuse of authority, torture causing death, and coercion. The victim’s parents have demanded 1.55 million baht from…
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Thai government unleashes the fear machine for Songkran – OPINION
Today a popular English-language news outlet led with a story that quotes Dr Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai, DG of the Department of Health, who claims the public health ministry is forecasting daily Covid infections could hit 100,000 after Songkran this year. The Thai public health ministry, headed up by Minister and deputy PM, Anutin Charnvirakul, has taken a random stab in the…
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BMA and CCSA will meet Monday, decide on Songkran water splashing in Bangkok
Thailand’s CCSA and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration will meet on Monday to decide (again) if Bangkokians can splash water during Songkran. This news comes after officials announced last week that Songkran will be dry, for both alcohol and water splashing, for the third year in a row. That week, Thai officials said only traditional Songkran activities would be allowed. This…
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Officials debate Bangkok’s Sanam Luang public park
Thai officials are debating how much access the public should have to Sanam Luang, the historic public square in front of Bangkok’s Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha. After a governor candidate running under the Move Forward Party advocated removing fences around Sanam Luang, another official has defended keeping them and restricting access to the ‘public’ park. The…
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Health officials warn about 100,000 daily Covid cases after Songkran
As Songkran approaches, health officials are warning that daily Covid caseloads could reach over 100,000 after festivals “if Thais don’t take precautions”. Even before Songkran, the Department of Health predicted daily cases could rise to 50,000. But now they’ve doubled their prediction. PM Prayut is also urging Thais to “take precautions”, particularly before visiting elderly family members. A government spokesman…
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Two southern men accused of killing police officer arrested in Bangkok
Police arrested two southern men in Bangkok today who are accused of killing a police officer. The two men are the prime suspects in the fatal shooting of a sergeant major in southern Phattalung province earlier this month. A police lieutenant general said the suspects were also linked to other cases involving drugs and attempted murder. The two men allegedly…
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8 cobras invade elderly lady’s home in Central Thailand
An elderly lady from the central Thai province of Nakhon Si Ayutthaya found eight cobras slithering around her house. 77 year old Cherry Puangrod was at her home in Bang Pa-in district alone yesterday evening when she walked into the bathroom and saw a cobra from the corner of her eye. Cherry ran out of the house to get her…
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Monk flees from temple after residents spot him stealing underwear
A Thai TV star searched the quarters of a monk accused of stealing ladies’ underwear and found both men’s and women’s underwear in the monk’s luggage. The couple living nearby the temple in the central province of Chachoengsao checked the CCTV footage after the wife’s underwear went missing and say they saw a monk taking the panties off a hanger…
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Three fishermen found clinging to a foam crate in the middle of the sea
Three fishermen were found clinging to a foam crate in the middle of the ocean yesterday by another group of fishermen after their boat sank in the middle of the night. Facebook user Yuranan Thongprem posted at 10:04am yesterday: “A bit of an exciting story. We took our boat out to go deep-sea fishing and saw a foam crate far…
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Friday Covid Update: 26,050 new cases; provincial totals
69 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 24,648 with 2,950 of those fatalities since the start of this year. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 26,050 new Covid-19 cases and 22,219 recoveries. There are now 244,111 people in Thailand being treated for Covid-19. Out of…
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Bangkok man arrested for allegedly luring boys into porn, believed to be part of ring
Today, police arrested a Bangkok man they believe is involved in a child pornography ring. The arrest was part of a raid in four spots today, which are Bangkok, Ang Thong, Chaiyaphum and Kanchanaburi. A police major general said police started investigating the ring when a child pornography suspect was arrested in the northeastern province of Nakhon Phanom in February.…
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Two Thai women allegedly drug tourist at Bangkok hotel, steal US$4,000
A foreign tourist who took two Thai women back to his hotel room in Bangkok was reportedly drugged and robbed. The women allegedly took off with US$4,000 and 15,000 baht in cash as well as other belongings. It is believed that drugs were mixed in the man’s coffee cup. The tourist, who is a firefighter from Kuwait, travelled to Thailand…
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Police in Isaan Thailand told to be lenient with cannabis growers after grandma’s arrest
Following the arrest of a 70-year-old woman and her relative for growing a cannabis plant at their home in the Isaan province Khon Kaen, local police have been advised to use common sense, and good judgment when enforcing the laws on cannabis as Thailand loosens laws to become more marijuana-friendly. The women spent the night in jail and were punished…
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To splash or not to splash? Bangkok mulls Songkran parties on Khao San Road, after tourism industry rebuke
Fret not, splash happy expats. The tourism industry is fighting for your right to a Songkran water fight. Now the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration is mulling whether to allow Songkran water splashing festivities to be held on Khao San Road, after the CCSA’s unpopular announcement banning water splashing activities for a third consecutive year sparked much backlash from local businesses last…
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Owner of Phuket’s Sri Panwa luxury resort crashes again, Bentley engulfed in flames
A year after a serious car accident, the owner of Phuket’s Sri Panwa resort was in another accident where he lost control of his Bentley as he drove around a bend, causing it to flip multiple times. He and his friends were able to escape the car before it was engulfed in flames. No one was injured. The owner of…
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Phuket Governor Narong issues mandates on handling Covid-19 corpses
Phuket Governor Narong issued a provincial order with four mandates on Wednesday about how to deal with the dead bodies of Covid-19 victims. The mandates are: 1) It is forbidden to bathe the corpse. 2) It is forbidden to use injections to treat the corpse. 3) It is forbidden to open the corpse after it has been collected for the…
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