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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Juvenile court releases Nong Tor’s mother on bail for 9,000 baht
UPDATE A juvenile court in central Thailand released “Nim”, the 17 year old mother of missing baby Nong Tor, on bail for 9,000 baht yesterday after she confessed to dumping the body of her eight month old son in the Tha Chin River on February 5. Police interrogated Nim for more than six hours before charging her on three counts:…
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Thailand is home to the most motorcyclists in the world
The Pew Research Centre reported that Thailand has the most motorcyclists in the world. Similarly, most victims of road accidents in the country are riding motorcycles. If you’ve ever visited Vietnam, you might have noticed the abundance of motorbikes on the road, especially in Ho Chi Minh City. It may lead you to believe that Vietnam has the highest number…
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Thailand welcomed 2.14 million international tourists last month
Thailand welcomed 2.14 million international tourists in January, data from the tourism ministry showed today. The data showed a small decline from the previous month. The top three source markets last month were Malaysia with 288,745 tourists, Russia with 202,759 tourists, and South Korea 169,462 tourists. However, the return of travellers from China, following the removal of Covid-19 restrictions, helped…
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Khao San Road bouncers warned against use of violence after one slaps foreign tourist (video)
The Superintendent of Chana Songkram Police Station rounded up all the bouncers working on Bangkok’s notorious Khao San Road yesterday to remind them not to use violence against tourists and partygoers. The warning follows a recent viral video of a security guard, working at a nightclub on Khao San Road, handcuffing a Westerner and repeatedly slapping him in the face.…
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Car crash in Kanchanaburi kills German tourist and Thai driver
A car crash in Kanchanaburi province tragically killed a German tourist and a Thai tour van driver yesterday in Sai Yok district. The incident took place at around 6pm near kilometre marker 127+800 on Highway 323 (Sai Yok-Thong Pha Phum), near Moo 4 village in tambon Tha Sao. The crash happened when a Toyota Fortuner veered across the middle line…
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Russians own 40% of foreign-owned condos in Phuket
Thailand’s Real Estate Information Centre (REIC) reported that Russian citizens own nearly 40% of foreign-owned condominiums in Phuket, worth a collective 880 million baht (US$25). In Phuket, Russians have overtaken the Chinese as the No.1 condo buyer. Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 last year, Thailand has become a refuge for Russian citizens, as reported by Al Jazeera. The…
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Thai national park wins prestigious environmental award
Thailand struggles to maintain its environment due to pollution, but some national parks are fighting to protect the country’s natural beauty. A national park in Thailand‘s Prachuap Khirik Khan province won a prestigious environmental award. The country’s Department of Environmental Quality Promotion and the Department of National Parks awarded Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park with the Green National Park…
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Police arrest 2 men, 1 woman for overpass threesome in Thailand
Police in Phitsanulok province arrested two Thai men and one Thai woman for engaging in public sex on an overpass in broad daylight after a local media outlet exposed them on Facebook yesterday. Local news Facebook page named Esor News 2 posted a picture yesterday of what appears to be a couple having sex on a bridge with the caption… “Young…
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Electrical short circuit closes runway at Krabi Airport, Thailand
Thai and foreign passengers were left stranded at Krabi International Airport in southern Thailand yesterday evening after the runway was closed due to an electrical short circuit, causing disruption to several flights. Facebook page Krabi Provincial Public Relations Department announced at 8.30pm that the airport sent out a Notice to Airmen (NOTEM) announcing the temporary closure of the airport from…
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Mother of missing baby ‘Nong Tor’ confesses
The mother of the eight month old baby who went missing from Nakhon Phatom province in central Thailand on February 5 has confessed to dumping her son’s body in the Tha Chin river, reported Deputy National Police Chief Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn this morning. According to Thai Rath, the baby’s 17 year old mother “Nim” confessed to the police that Nong…
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Company ranks Bangkok 30th best city in the world, 2nd best in ASEAN
Thailand’s capital city of Bangkok has been ranked high lately on several lists of cities in a number of different areas. Now, a famous tourism consulting company, Resonance Consultancy, has named the Bangkok the 30th best city in the world, and the second best in ASEAN. A Thai government spokesperson, Anucha Burapachaisri, announced on the ranking on Saturday. Resonance Consultancy…
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Thai Airways to merge with Thai Smile to ‘reduce losses’
Thai Airways is to merge with Thai Smile to “reduce losses.” The plan is expected to be approved by the end of this year. Piyasvasti Amranand, chairman of THAI’s committee overseeing the airline’s rehabilitation, said the restructuring had been on the cards for a while and had always been part of the plan. “A study about the merger plan is…
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Federal baht bus standing ban puts drivers in a pickle
A new law has been published in the Royal Gazette, stating that passengers are no longer allowed to stand on the back of baht buses, also known as songtaews. But drivers are also obligated to pick up all passengers, leaving drivers with the dilemma of either illegally not picking up passengers when full or illegally overcrowding and allowing passengers to…
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Thai army punishes 5 soldiers and their commanders for gunfight in Bangkok
The Royal Thai Army (RTA) punished five non-commissioned officers and their commanders after residents living near the premises in Bangkok complained about a gunfight and loud party at night. Locals living near an army premise in the Chaeng Watthana district of Bangkok have recently released a video of soldiers engaging in violent behaviour. The caption said… “The gunfight on February…
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Pattaya teen motorcyclist seriously injures pedestrian
A Pattaya teen motorcyclist seriously injured a pedestrian on Wednesday night. Rescuers rushed to the scene on Soi Bun Samphan 13 to find the victim, a 49 year old woman named Pornthip Kiatkamonchai, lying in the middle of the road. The rescuers found the rider, a 15 year old boy, with only very slight injuries. The rescuers said the boy…
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Loan shark claims debtor shot herself in the head at his house in Thailand
A loan shark in northern Thailand informed the police on Tuesday that a debtor – who is also his ex-girlfriend – committed suicide in front of him by shooting herself in the head due to financial stress. Her relatives are not convinced by the claim and insist that she never had a gun. At 8.30pm, 58 year old Somkiat rang…
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Thai Airways Q4 loss narrows
Thai Airways Q4 profit almost tripled as tourists started to return to the holiday kingdom. The carrier’s net income for the three months ending December 31 rose to 11.2 billion baht (US$300 million) from 4 billion baht a year earlier, chief executive officer Chai Eamsiri said on Friday. Thai Airways Q4 profit to support strong growth in 2023 Operating income…
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Malware and ransomware biggest threat to Thai businesses
Malware and ransomware continue to be just as much of a threat to businesses this year as last, according to a cybersecurity firm FortiGuard Labs. The global cyber threat study and research team, found malware and ransomware with sophisticated attack patterns and delivery remain the main threats to Thai organisations. Vulnerability will increase During the fourth quarter of 2022, FortiGuard…
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Video of foreign children playing with dangerous tokay gecko shocks Thai netizens
Netizens in Thailand are baffled by a clip posted by a Thai TikToker of three foreign children playing with a tokay gecko, an aggressive lizard feared most by Thais. Tokay geckos are not venomous but are known for being aggressive, territorial and inflicting strong, nasty bites that draw blood and get infected easily. Once a tokay gecko bites, it locks…
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TAT expects roadshow to help bring 5 million Chinese tourists to Thailand this year
Earlier this week, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) launched its ‘Amazing Thailand Amazing New Chapters Roadshow to China 2023.’ The roadshow began on 21 February in Shanghai and later moved to Chengdu and Guangzhou. TAT expects the roadshow to help it reach its goal of welcoming 5 million tourists to Thailand this year. The roadshow aimed to create business…
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Oman Air announces network expansion for 2023 summer schedule
Continuing its ambitious and dynamic strategy of fleet and network expansion, Oman Air, the national airline of the Sultanate of Oman, has unveiled its summer schedule for 2023. The schedule specifies significant frequency increases on existing routes, and the addition of four destinations—representing a 60% increase in the number of flights from its hub in Muscat compared to the previous…
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Big Joke to visit America to discuss Thailand’s human trafficking ranking
Deputy National Police Chief General Surachate Hakparn, aka ‘Big Joke,’ is set to visit America to discuss Thailand’s human trafficking ranking. Big Joke is answering questions from American officials about Thailand’s efforts to tackle human trafficking, before the US releases its annual Trafficking In Persons (TIP) report in July, Nation Thailand reported. Countries are ranked on their efforts to fight…
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Four suspects arrested over murder of 4 men in southern Thailand
Police arrested four suspects in connection with the murder of four men whose bodies were found in Juerae Lake and the Kolok River in the southern province of Narathiwat two days ago. Residents found three dead bodies with gunshot wounds in a sedan truck submerged in Juerae Lake. Then another lifeless body who was also shot dead was found in…
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Thailand votes for Russia to withdraw from Ukraine at UN Assembly
Thailand was one of 141 countries at the United Nations (UN)’s General Assembly yesterday that voted for Russia to end the war in Ukraine and withdraw troops immediately. Seven countries voted against and 32 countries abstained. Thailand’s vote is significant since Thailand refused to condemn Russia’s annexation of Ukraine at a UN Assembly in October 2022, abstaining from the vote.…
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The healing power of cannabis in Thai herbal medicine
Want to explore new ways to heal your body and mind? Then Thailand’s thriving medical cannabis clinics is your answer. Since the legalization of cannabis in 2022, these clinics have popped up all over the country, offering innovative treatments for a variety of ailments. But wait, what exactly is Thai herbal medicine, and how does cannabis fit in? Well, let’s dive…
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Dozens of luxury cars stolen from UK seized in Thailand
Thailand’s Department of Special Investigation (DSI) seized 29 of 35 luxury cars reportedly stolen from the UK and smuggled to Bangkok, Thailand, reports ThaiRath. The seizures follow a request from England’s National Crime Agency for the DSI’s help in locating 35 luxury cars collectively worth more than £2.4 million (more than 100 million Thai baht), believed to be illegally imported…
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Get your groove on at Thailand’s biggest reggae festival
Get your groove on at Thailand’s biggest reggae festival, coming up next month in the beach town of Cha-am. The Sunset Beach Music Festival 2023 will feature some of the biggest names in the industry, Thailand’s reggae and ska fans can expect to have a blast. The festival will be held at the Baan Mai Bon Hat resort on Bang…
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Elderly couple attacked by over 10,000 wild bees in northern Thailand
An elderly couple in the northern province of Tak suffered a terrifying attack by a swarm of over ten thousand wild bees. The couple, both around 70 years old, was sitting in front of their house near the Ping River in the Baan Tak district when the bees descended upon them without warning. The couple endured multiple stings all over…
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Forest encroachment at Thap Lan puts tigers at risk
Forest encroachment at Thap Lan National Park in Prachin Buri – the heartland of Thailand’s tiger population – has become so severe that Natural Resources and Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa is considering the possibility of new borders being drawn up. Varawut said… “I’m confident the government won’t be disadvantaged by using forest borderlines to solve this problem inside the park.…
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Wanted Fraud Frenchman Arrested in Pattaya | Thailand News Today
Researchers from the Prince of Songkla University have discovered a new species of orchid in the Paribatra waterfall in the southern province of Songkhla, Thailand. Led by Sahut Chantanaorrapint, a professor from the Department of Biology of the Faculty of Science at Prince of Songkla University, the team identified the new species and published their findings in an international botanical…
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