News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Sponsored Planning to extend your Thai visa? Why health insurance is more important than ever
If you plan to stay longer in Thailand, having health insurance is now more important than ever. Thai immigration often asks for proof of medical coverage when you apply to extend your visa. This applies to many types of visas,...
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Prachuap Khiri Khan woman seeks help after gaining 200 kilograms
A Prachuap Khiri Khan woman who cannot walk after gaining about 200 kilograms of weight asked for help to lose weight on Monday. 59 year old Urai Noowan, a resident of Tambon Pak Praekk in Prachuap Khiri Khan’s Bang Saphan Noi district, said she could not afford going to a hospital for treatment of her obesity. She lives with her…
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Drug conflicts likely motive behind murder of five in Yala
Officials examine the blood-splattered scene where five men were shot dead in Yala’s Bannang Sata district early yesterday. Authorities say the killings were probably not related to the deep South insurgency. PHOTO: The Nation By Suriya Patathayo, Nakharin Chinnaworkomol and Parez Lohasan. A conflict over the drug trade is thought to be the motive behind the brutal killing of five men…
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Historic handshake leads to a day of talks in Singapore
Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un made history this morning, becoming the first sitting US and North Korean leaders to meet and shake hands, as they seek to end a tense decades-old nuclear stand-off. The two men strode toward each other and shared a handshake beneath the white-washed walls of an upscale hotel on Sentosa Island, Singapore, before sitting down…
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Phuket Town woman arrested with drugs
In a week of ‘crackdowns’, a woman has arrested with methamphetamine and crystal methamphetamine in Phuket Town. A team of Phuket City Police have arrested 33 year old Hassaya ‘Pla’ Kamjanapong at Soi Taling Chan. Police seized 19.62 grams of crystal methamphetamine and 137 methamphetamine pills. She was taken to the Phuket City Police Station where she has been charged with…
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Five shot dead in Yala home invasion
Paramedics remove the bodies of the victims to hospital for autopsy. (PHOTO: Maluding Deeto) Police say five men have been shot dead in the southern province of Yala, the latest killings in a region plagued by insurgency for over a decade. The Bangkok Post is reporting that gunmen stormed into a house and shot five people dead in Bannang Sata district…
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Heroin-swallowing smugglers nabbed in Chiang Mai and Bangkok
15.5 kilograms of heroin is a serious amount of illicit narcotics. Six Nepalese and one Indian national have been accused of being members of a transnational drug-trafficking syndicate, They’ve been transporting drugs by having people swallow dozens of capsules containing heroin and were arrested last week. The Nepalese suspects were identified as Singha Bir Gongbotamang, Sudarshan Thapa, Prasad Gurung, Suresh…
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French tourist reports sale of Nazi merchandise in Pattaya
A French tourist has raised concerns about the sale of Nazi paraphernalia in Pattaya. PattayaOne.news reports that 34 year old Alexandre Jandaeng spoke of his shock at seeing the goods, which included pictures of Adolf Hitler, swastika emblazoned scarves and coins, on sale at a market in the popular resort town. Mr Jandaeng reported the sale of the goods to Pattaya…
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Chinese couple trash Phuket apartment
Won’t be the first tenants, nor the last, to leave a room in a disgusting condition. But this one is truly revolting, and bizarre. Coconuts Bangkok report that a Phuket apartment owner took to the internet yesterday to share horrific photos of a room he rented to a Chinese couple for just two nights. The Thai man went so far as to…
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Thaiger Briefing – June 11
thethaiger.com Briefing. A new, daily, quick update on all Phuket and Thailand’s main news stories.
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One arrest leads to three other in the ongoing drug crackdown
A team from the Phuket Provincial Police, led by Lt Col Pongpan Siripattaranukun, last week arrested four drug suspects. On Monday (June 4), Police arrested 22 year old Chaianan ‘Ham’ Kaewamporn at a house in Kathu. Police seized 3.37 grams of crystal methamphetamine. He was taken to the Kathu Police Station. On Tuesday (June 5) police arrested 34 year old…
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Kane Shepherd receives two awards at the Meritus Awards Gala in KL
Kane Shepherd, Thailand’s young motorsports star, has received the coveted Rookie Overall Champion trophy for first year drivers and Overall Vice Champion at the recent Formula 4 Meritus Awards Gala 2017. The Meritus Awards Gala (MAG) 2017 is an annual black-tie event to profile and reward racing talent in Asia Pacific. Held in Kuala Lumpur on June 8, the MAG…
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Upgraded measures discussed over Chinese tourists safety
At a meeting was held today (June 11), hosted by the Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Teeraphol Thipjaroen along with his guest, the Chinese Consulate-General in Phuket, Ma Cui Hong. Maj Gen Teeraphol says, “The meeting today is aimed at finding additional measures to assure the safety of Chinese tourists, especially warning and direction signs in the Chinese language, placed…
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Green turtle found in Chantaburi, full of plastic
The reporting of the deaths of these magnificent marine creatures, found to be riddled with plastic they’ve unfitly consumed as they feed in the seas off Thailand, puts more pressure on the Thai Government. Let’s hope their deaths are not in vain. A green turtle has died in Chanthaburi’s Laem Sing district after consuming a vast quantity of plastic. A Facebook page, ReReef,…
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French man released without charge after rape allegations from UK teen
PHOTO: Daily News Koh Tao, in the news again for all the wrong reasons. This time, a story printed in international media, has taken a turn with the man arrested in Phuket for the alleged rape, released from custody. The French man, arrested in Phuket in April, after a UK 18 year old claimed that she had been raped on…
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Dutch Ambassador shares concerns over safety of Phuket tourists
Phuket’s Vice Governor Thawornwat Kongkaew welcomed the Ambassador-Designate in Thailand Kees Rade and Dutch Honorary Consul for Phuket, Seven Smulders, over the weekend. Vice Governor Thawornwat says after the meeting, “We have discussed about tourist safety, things like tourists who rent motorbikes without motorbike license, beach safety and emergency situation management.” “We have surveyed a number of rental motorbike companies…
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10 Hua Hin hotels face closure over Hotel Act infringements
‘Fake’ hotels and other premises being operated as hotels, but don’t have proper licences, are in the firing line at the moment, in just about all the major tourist provinces around the country. There’s clearly a nationwide crackdown on these dodgy guesthouses, hostels and mini-hotels at the moment. The owners say they find it almost impossible to comply with the…
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A tale of two cities, Phuket style
By Bill Barnett of c9hotelworks.com The raindrops keep falling on my head. Rainy season always brings with it time to dust off the classics, and strangely enough, straight off my top shelf came Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. Life is played out so well in these tattered pages, which are turned a mottled brown on the edges. There…
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Two arrested over kratom in raids in Chalong
A team of Chalong police, with search warrants in hand, raided two houses in Chalong on Friday (June 8). Police first raided a house in Soi Palai at 5pm. Police arrested 22 year old Anuwat Khawon. Police seized 20 bundles of kratom leaves. Anuwat admitted that he came to the house to buy kratom leaves. The seller went had already…
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Lampang pineapple farmers picket City Hall over falling prices
Pineapple prices have been tumbling across the country, not only in the popular southern plantations. Now Lampang pineapple farmers are struggling to sell their products in the Chiang Mai market after another price crash hits the pineapple world. On June 8, over 10 pineapple farmers from Lampang set up shop outside City Hall to highlight the problems with pineapple prices falling…
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Dead sperm whale found off Phuket under investigation
Officials at the Phuket Marine Endangered Species Unit are investigating yet another mammal washed up on our beaches, this time aa dead sperm whale which was washed up on a beach at Coconut Island on Saturday (June 9). Officials at the Phuket Marine Endangered Species Unit were notified on Saturday afternoon that the dead whale has been washed onto the…
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Burmese national arrested over murder in Rassada
A Burmese national killed another Myanmar man saying that he “was angry that his father was slapped on the face” yesterday (June 10). Phuket City Police were notified of an incident at a rented property in Rassada yesterday afternoon. Police and rescue workers arrived at the scene to find the body of a 37 year old La, a Burmese national…
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Laguna Phuket Marathon Results – All the winners
ALL PHOTOS: Naratip Golf Srisupab/SEALs Sports Images The Laguna Phuket Marathon has been run and won for 2018. Here are the winners. Congratulations to all the participants and organisers. Here are the Top Three results for each distance… Marathon (42.195km) – Male Koji Nishizawa (JPN), 02:44:16 Supit Chantharat (THA), 02:54:52 Jaray Jearanai (THA), 02:59:37 Marathon (42.195km) – Female Sabrina Polito (ITA), 03:30:27…
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Thai, Italian and Japanese runners star at Laguna Phuket Marathon 2018
PHOTO: Naratip Golf Srisupab/SEALs Sports Images Nine thousand runners from more than 50 countries took to the start line of the 2018 Laguna Phuket Marathon on 9th and 10th June and even before the first start, records had been smashed: Largest field of runners ever (9,000); the largest number of international participants (1,300), the largest ever Marathon participation (2,000),…
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Myanmar-Thai border mega bust. 15 tonnes of drug-making chemicals.
By Jessada Chantharak A 15 tonne batch of sodium cyanide that could have been used to make millions of methamphetamine pills was seized and Chiang Rai man was arrested last week when a smuggling operation into Myanmar from Thailand was intercepted. Truck driver, 41 year old Sawat Kaewdam, is facing charges over alleged illegal entry and failing to obtain a…
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Rare dugong carcass washes up on Phang Nga beach
By Anothai Ngandee The carcass of a large dugong, estimated to have been 15-20 years old at the time of its death, has been swept onto Koh Khor Khao Beach in Phang Nga’s Takua Pa today (Sunday). Phang Nga province last year reported 10 live dugongs in its seas. A fertile zone of the dugong’s favourite food, seagrass, is located…
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Islamic committee chair dies from Friday shooting in Pattani
Pattani Islamic Committee deputy chairman Aduldej Chenae, who was seriously injured from a gun attack in the southern province on Friday, was pronounced dead at 2.45am today (Sunday) in an intensive care unit of Pattani Hospital. The 55 year old Aduldej was leaving a mosque in front of Ban Lalo Witthaya School in Sai Buri district, where he also served…
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High speed road crash in Korat leave two dead
From the sketchy news we’ve received it appears there was a military officer and his wife on one bike, both now dead. A 19 year old student, driving a Mazda SUV, is injured but has survived the crash. Early reports suggest the bike and the car were travelling up to 160 kph. The video is from Channel 8 News. The link…
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Three sea turtles washed up on Phuket beaches
A green turtle and two hawksbill sea turtles have been found on Laypang, Kata and Kamala Beaches yesterday (June 9). Officials at the Phuket Marine Endangered Species Unit were notified by a staff member of a hotel in Cherng Talay that a turtle had been washed up on to Laypang Beach entangled in a fishing net. Hotel staff members were…
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21 year old Australian Jaydon Sienkiewicz remains in serious condition
Thursday’s stabbing on a young Australian man in a Pattaya night club is making headlines overseas, particularly in Australia. News.com.au is reporting that the 21 year old’s Thai stepmother was ‘horrified’ when he went to the bathroom and returned covered in blood. News.com.au reports that an Australian man is in a serious condition after he was attacked in a bathroom while…
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Pattaya seminar teaches students to say NO
Human trafficking and prostitution remain to enormous elephants in the room for Thai society and past Governments. A seminar in Pattaya is hoping to do something about it. Students are being taught how to say ‘no’ to sex during an Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division (ATPD) seminar to help reduce human trafficking and youth prostitution. As many as 200 students, teachers,…
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