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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Expat says he was almost deported over Facebook posts
With the ongoing pro-democracy protests, some have raised question: What could happen to foreigners who get involved or speak out against Thai politics? Or post their thoughts on social media? Well, they could possibly get deported. Expat Yan Marchal says he almost got kicked out of the country for posts he made on Facebook. Many of Yan’s recent Facebook posts…
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4 political activists, including human rights lawyer Anon, released from custody
Human rights lawyer and protest leader, Anon Nampa, has been released from custody, alongside 3 other pro-democracy activists. Thai PBS World reports that Aekkachai Hongkangwan, Somyot Prueksakasemsook, and Suranart Paenprasert left Bangkok Remand Prison with Anon, just after midnight last night. Their release comes after the Criminal Court rejected a bid by police to retain the 4 in custody. Anon…
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2 dead, 1 injured in suspected murder-suicide in Samut Prakan
A man allegedly shot and killed a woman before shooting himself to death after finding her in bed with another man. Police say the other man was shot and injured as he was fleeing the Samut Prakan apartment. Police were called to the second floor apartment above a boat noodle shop and found the owner of the shop, identified as…
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Hotels reluctant to apply for ASQ status due to government’s cap on tourist arrivals
With the number of foreign arrivals who can enter Thailand on the special tourist visa limited to just 1,200 a month, hotel owners say they’re reluctant to apply for alternative state quarantine status. Hoteliers say a lack of tourists in sufficient numbers, coupled with the number of quarantine facilities already in existence, means the investment required to gain ASQ approval…
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Thai Airways to launch one-off flight over sacred Buddhist sites
Thai Airways has announced a special flight on November 30 that will give passengers the opportunity to chant Buddhist mantras while flying over 99 sacred sites in the Kingdom. Wiwat Piyawiroj, executive vice-president at the struggling national carrier, says passengers will fly over Bangkok and 31 provinces, taking in 99 holy sites, over which they will be able to chant…
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Thai Airways offers ‘semi-commercial’ flights to 7 international destinations
After a major slowdown in both international and domestic travel due to coronavirus travel restrictions, Thai Airways is now offering flights to and from 7 international destinations over the next 2 months, according to the airline’s chief executive Wiwat Piyawirot. These flights are “semi-commercial.” Wiwat says return flights are intended for Thais returning home from overseas, those with families in…
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100 locals surround police after drug suspect was fatally shot
Around 100 locals in the southern province Nakhon Si Thammarat surrounded a team of police after an officer allegedly shot and killed a drug trafficking suspect. Many witnesses say police “overrated.” 31 year old Charoensak Rachpumad, known as “Bang Mad,” was approached by a team of 10 Crime Suppression Division officers at a rubber plantation in the province’s Ron Phibun…
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Thailand News Today | HM comments, PM visits Phuket & Samui, Thai floods | November 2
Back for another week of daily news updates, the most widely watched Thai news program, in English. What’s on the program today? “We love them all the same” – His Majesty comments about the Thai protesters In a rare moment, and certainly the first time commenting about the current political unrest, His Majesty King Vajiralongkorn has described Thailand as “the…
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“Get the flu shot,” Thai FDA eases worries after post-injection deaths in South Korea
Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration is trying to ease the public’s fears over influenza vaccines after 59 people in South Korea reportedly died sometime after getting the flu shot (although there’s no evidence so far that links the vaccine to the deaths.) FDA deputy secretary general Surachoke Tangwiwat says that vaccine has never been imported to Thailand, adding that people…
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Bangkok Airways offers unlimited flights through new membership program
Bangkok Airways is now offering unlimited domestic flights through a new membership program. The airline launched the new Elite Card for 100,000 baht, allowing unlimited travel throughout 2021. Those interested can apply for the card from now until November 30. Tickets for flights from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 can be booked starting on December 16. Air Asia…
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Fuel tanker driver killed in crash, truck engulfed in flames
A fuel tanker truck driver died yesterday in the northern province Lamphun after crashing into a car. The truck carrying fuel overturned and caught fire. 59 year old Nikom Kamchan’s body was found near the wreck after firefighters extinguished the fire. It’s the second fuel tanker fire in the past week. 29 year old Patcharin Somsawan says he was driving…
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It’s beetle fighting season in Northern Thailand
It’s fight season … for Rhinoceros Beetles. The bugs battle on a wooden stage. Their horns lock as they push against each other until one backs down. People watch and place bets. Some wagers are as high as 100,000 baht. From the start of wet season until winter, locals in northern provinces Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai and Lampang gather for…
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Travellers to Thailand to wear “Smartband” tracking watch
Special Tourist Vias, 14 day quarantine, “plans”, “models” and endless red-tape. Now we’ve got the “smartband” to track foreigners when they visit Thailand. The so-called Smartband will have to be worn by any foreign travellers entering Thailand. The new wearable restriction for travellers to Thailand coincides with the Cabinet announcement this week to allow more foreign tourists and crew of…
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Foreigners who test positive for C19 in Thailand won’t be able to use the public health system
The battle to reopen Thailand’s borders is shaping up as a 3-way PR fight between economic hawks who are eager to re-open to reboot the country’s tourism industry, a government and medical officials resting on their laurels after containing the virus, and a risk-averse population who, survey after survey, indicate they are keen to keep the borders closed. In another…
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US cuts Thailand’s tariff benefits after long-running pork dispute
Thailand’s duty-free privileges for US$817 million in exports with the US are to be revoked from the end of this year, according to US President Trump in an announcement yesterday. The President blamed a lack of progress in opening the Thai market to US pork products. Trump’s letter announcing the action follows more than 2 years of threats and negotiations…
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Dow and S&P 500 take a breath after an ugly week, tech stocks lead the way down
US stocks closed lower yesterday to end an ugly week downbeat with ‘uncertainty’ remaining the overwhelming sentiment. Tech stocks led the march downwards. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped in its biggest monthly collapse since March with investors reacting to rising Covid-19 cases in the US and Europe, peppered by nervousness ahead of next Tuesday’s US presidential election. The increased…
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‘Bread’ krathongs are killing the fish
First it was no polystyrene or steel pins. The push was for natural, sustainable ratings as Thais floated away their woes in the annual celebration. Now there is a new warning that the “natural” kratongs, made from bread and edible ingredients, are causing river pollution. Fish found in the river don’t eat bread and the ingredients have broken down before…
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Thailand News Today | Immigration deadline, quarantine update?, arrests averted | October 30
Last day of the week and all the main stories from around Thailand. Thailand News Today, a bit late today but here it is… Some immigration offices open tomorrow for last minute visa extensions The latest amnesty is up tomorrow (October 31) and some immigration offices will be open for those who still need sort out their visa extensions. Those…
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Lockdown may contribute to Thailand’s rise in dengue fever cases, study suggests
Social distancing and lockdown measures may have contributed to a rise in dengue fever in Thailand, according to a recent study funded by the Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council. Researchers, which included scientists from the University of Singapore, examined dengue fever cases in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. No impact on the dengue transmission was found in Malaysia…
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Man arrested for allegedly driving with monitor lizards tied to his motorbike
A man was arrested on animal abuse charges for allegedly catching water monitor lizards, tying them to his motorbike and driving around Prachuap Khri Khan, south of Phetchaburi province. The man, who is identified as Chaowalit, posted photos on Facebook of lizards tied up to the back of his motorbike. One photo shows a large monitor lizard tied up to…
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Court rejects bid to arrest activists who led march on German Embassy
A bid to apprehend 5 anti-government activists, who led a march to the Germany Embassy on Monday from the Sam Yan intersection, has failed, after a court in Bangkok rejected a police application for arrest warrants. The Bangkok South Criminal Court has turned down an application from Pitak Suthikul, acting superintendent of Thungmahamek police in Bangkok. Pitak had requested arrest…
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Thai students rank highest for social awareness, weak on view of different cultures
A global survey carried out the by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reveals that Thai students are highly attuned to social issues compared to students of other countries. However, they fare less well when it comes to respecting and viewing foreign cultures as equal. Nation Thailand reports that the OECD findings are based on a 2018 survey of…
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German government does not believe the Thai Monarch broke the law on conducting state affairs
Germany says His Majesty the King has not violated the European country’s ban on conducting foreign politics on German soil where he resides. The government in Berlin briefed lawmakers this week, saying the Thai Monarch is allowed make occasional decisions regarding Thai state affairs, but he cannot continuously conduct business from overseas, a source from parliament told Reuters. So far,…
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Tests show Samui woman did not contract virus at quarantine hotel
Tests carried out by the Disease Control Department show that the woman who tested positive for Covid-19 after being discharged from quarantine and travelling to Koh Samui, did not become infected at the quarantine facility. Dr Sopon Iamsirithaworn says the results do not match those of 2 other guests who tested positive at the hotel in Samut Prakan, just outside…
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Thailand News Today | STV updates, fuel tanker explodes, 19 dead in Viet typhoon | October 29
Daily TV news, in English. Everything you need to know in around 5 minutes. Keep up to date on The Thaiger. “Pattaya Model” to focus on Special Tourist Visa visitors from China and Russia Firstly the Phuket Model, now the Pattaya Model as the eastern seaboard city wants to cash in on the new Special Tourist Visa scheme to help…
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Cruise ships and yachts to dock in Thailand, visitors to enter on Special Tourist Visa
Cruise ships and yachts will be allowed to dock in Thailand and visitors will be allowed disembark under the Special Tourist Visa. The new measure hasn’t been made official yet, but it will go into effect 30 days after it’s published in the Royal Gazette. The Cabinet approved the new guidelines yesterday which allows captains, crew and passengers travelling from…
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Is Koh Pha Ngan Thailand’s best island?
OPINION Koh Pha Ngan was voted third best island in Asia in the 2020 Condé Nast’s Readers Choice Awards. The island is widely known for its monthly Full Moon parties on Haad Rin beach, but Surat Thani governor Wichawut Jinto, who boasted about the island’s recent rating, said there’s more to Koh Pha Ngan than Haad Rin. Condé Nast publishes…
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Palang Pracharath MP calls for probe into Pheu Thai MP who cut own arm in parliament
Opposition politicians are clashing over the actions of one MP who deliberately cut his arm in an act of self-harm to draw attention to the plight of anti-government protesters. Palang Pracharath MP, Sira Jenjaka, is threatening Wisarn Techathirawat, Pheu Thai MP for Chiang Rai, with removal from office for what he’s calling a publicity stunt. On Tuesday, during a special joint…
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Court bans Thailand’s first transgender MP over alleged media interests
An MP from the Move Forward Party, an opposition party that opposes the military’s influence in government, has been banned and could face jail time after the Constitutional Court found the MP guilty of violating a law prohibiting media shareholders from applying to become MPs. The court also looked into 57 other MPs over the same offence, but they were…
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Contempt charge dropped against protest leader Parit
The leader of the Free People protest group, Parit Chiwarak, aka, “Penguin”, has had a charge of contempt dropped. He had been charged after calling on activists to gather at the court on August 8 to obstruct proceedings in a case against fellow protest leaders, Anon Nampa and Panupong Jadnok. The Bangkok Post reports that the Criminal Court dropped the…
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