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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Phuket governor petitions Bangkok to end restaurant alcohol ban, bar closure order
The governor of Phuket has lodged a formal appeal for restaurants on the southern island to be allowed to sell alcohol and for nightlife to be re-opened. The Phuket News reports that Narong Woonciew submitted the request to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration yesterday, citing the unprecedented financial struggles faced by locals as a result of the restrictions. The…
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Member of European Parliament wants Bulgarian cops watched
At a press conference in Sofia recently, Sophie in’t Veld, the chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, accused Bulgarian Prosecutor General Ivan Zhev of invoking “extraordinary powers” to target the opposition. In ‘t Veld, who led a European Parliament delegation to Bulgaria in December to investigate reports of official misdeeds, said Zhev had…
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Maria Kolesnikova: A heart for Belarus
The sentencing was a rare opportunity for the public to see Maria Kolesnikova, who had spent nearly a year in pretrial detention. On September 6, a court in Minsk sentenced the opposition politician to 11 years in a penal colony on charges including “extremism.” Her colleague, Maksim Znak, got one year less. The pair, who challenged Belarus’ disputed presidential election,…
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Will China’s move against coal power improve its image in EU?
The Chinese government made the surprise announcement last week that it will stop building coal-fired power stations abroad, a decision that could put it in the good books of the increasingly eco-conscious European Union. The pledge was made by Chinese President Xi Jinping in a pre-recorded address to the UN General Assembly, although he gave few details and questions remain…
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Thailand reduces quarantine to 7 days for fully vaccinated arrivals from October
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has approved a reduction in mandatory quarantine for vaccinated arrivals from Friday. Fully vaccinated travellers will now face quarantine of 7 days instead of 14. Unvaccinated arrivals, or those who cannot prove their vaccination status, will still be subject to a longer quarantine period of between 10 and 14 days. The CCSA also agreed…
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Consumer complaints hotline targets rip-off shopkeepers
A nationwide hotline number is now in operation to allow consumers to file complaints against shop owners who overcharge for basic necessities. Nation Thailand reports that the Commerce Ministry has launched the 1569 hotline following complaints of excessive charges for essential goods. Shopkeepers are being warned they face penalties of over 7 years’ imprisonment and/or a fine of 140,000 baht…
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Phuket Car rental business says gang rented cars and then sold them off
The owners of a car rental business in Phuket are out 10 cars and vans after a gang said they wanted to rent the vehicles for business, including work with a large cannabis operation, but failed to return the vehicles. The owners say they are worried the vehicles have already been sold off in other provinces. One of the rental…
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Curfew shortened, Bangkok spas, gyms, cinemas can re-open from October
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has approved the re-opening of 10 business types in Bangkok and other dark red provinces. According to a Coconuts report, from Friday, spas, cinemas, and indoor gyms can re-open, along with pre-schools, museums, and tattoo parlours. The news is not so good for the owners of bars and clubs, which must still remain closed…
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Powerful earthquake strikes near the Phillippines main island
A powerful earthquake struck just off the Philippines’ main island of Luzon, today. There was no reported damage or injuries, says the US Geological Survey and officials. The earthquake registered at a deep, 5.7 magnitude and hit near the Batangas province around midnight, Thailand time. Locals in Manila say there were woken up when their houses started shaking. The USGS…
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OnlyFans arrest sparks calls for reform of prostitution and pornography laws
Following the arrest of an OnlyFans content creator on pornography charges, there have been renewed calls in Thailand for sex work to be legalised. A woman, known as Nong Khai Nao, who is a content creator for the subscription platform, and her boyfriend, were arrested for filming sexual acts and posting it on OnlyFans. The site allows people to pay…
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DSI says land documents were illegally issued for the Phuket “Sri Panwa” resort
The luxury resort in Phuket accused of land encroachment will now be investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission, the Department of Land, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. Thailand’s Department of Special Investigations looked into the “Sri Panwa” project in Phuket and said that the resort illegally acquired land rights documents. According to Nation Thailand, the DSI found that Sri Panwa…
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More than 3,000 houses affected by severe flooding in Chaiyaphum
Over 3,000 houses across 23 villages in the northeastern Thai province of Chaiyaphum have been affected by what is considered the most severe flooding in a century. Kittipong Thamsoparat, the Tambon Ban Phet Municipality mayor, says a massive volume of water has surged into the Bamnet Narong district by way of the nearby Thep Sathit district in Chaiyaphum, as well…
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Australian PM unsure about appearing at UN climate summit
The Australian PM, Scott Morrison, who is facing pressure to adopt a 2050 net-zero carbon emissions goal said today that he may not go to this year’s UN climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland due partially to his extensive travels this year. Australia is noted for being the world’s largest coal exporter by value as well as still being dependent on…
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CCSA to review curfew hours and allowing more businesses and venues to reopen
The nighttime curfew might be reduced by an hour and 11 types of business and venues might be able to resume service as the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration will review a proposal for such requests, today. If all goes well with the CCSA, the curfew would shrink back 1 hour to 10pm to 4am, compared to the now 9pm…
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Study says Covid has reduced life expectancy the most since WWII
The Covid pandemic has slashed life expectancy in 2020 by the greatest amount since WWII, says a study published today by Oxford University. The report says the life expectancy of American men has been reduced by over 2 years. The report goes on to say that life expectancy dropped by over 6 months juxtaposed with 2019 in 22 of the…
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Monday Covid Update: 10,288 new cases and 101 deaths
Today, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 10,288 new covid-19 cases and 101 coronavirus-related deaths. Since April 1, in Thailand’s latest wave of the virus, 1,543,063 confirmed Covid-19 cases have been reported. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA has reported 12,494 recoveries. There are now 120,156 people in Thailand currently receiving medical treatment for Covid-19.…
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Czech Republic: Historic military bunkers go on sale
In the late 1930s, what was then Czechoslovakia built an extensive network of fortifications along the border with what was then the German Reich. Prague feared that the Germans would launch a surprise assault and overrun the country’s defenses before there was time to mobilize the army and reserves. Although the fortifications were not fully completed by September 1938, together…
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Flooded hospital in Chaiyaphum had to evacuates 40 patients
Around Thailand, heavy rains and flooding have ravaged the country. Earlier this morning, 40 patients were emergency evacuated from Bamnet Narong Hospital in Chaiyaphum by rescue workers as the facility flooded. The hospital suffered severe damage as floodwaters caused the urgent evacuation as one of the buildings on the hospital campus was flooded up to 80 centimetres. An X-ray room…
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300,000 more AstraZeneca vaccines donated from Japan arrived
In a well-timed shipment, 300,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines have arrived in Bangkok today, a donation from Japan. Today is the anniversary of a milestone for Thailand and Japan, as September 26 is the anniversary of the original establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Today marks the 134th anniversary of the relationship between Japan and Thailand, a perfect…
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Extremely rare earthstar mushrooms found in Phetchabun
In Phetchabun, a local villager was clearing a forest area when he discovered what is believed to be earthstar mushrooms, one of the rarest species of fungi in the world. The extremely scarce mushroom is rumoured to cause a sensation of intoxication similar to being drunk if someone were to consume it despite technically being classified as inedible. The mushrooms,…
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US calls meeting with Thai officials to resolve donated vaccines
The saga continues for the additional 1 million Pfizer vaccines that the US donated to Thailand that has been lost in bureaucratic red tape. The United States has now said they will organize a meeting with Thai authorities to discuss the delivery of the donated vaccines. Previously, Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul denied claims that he had dropped the…
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10 Burmese migrant workers arrested in Songkhla
10 Burmese migrant workers were arrested this morning at a rubber plantation near the Malaysian border in the southern Thai province of Songkhla. Police say 7 migrant workers managed to evade capture. A combination of provincial and immigration police went to the plantation that is near the Dan Nok Village, opposite Malaysia’s Kedah State, in anticipation of a van full…
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Over 50 million vaccine doses administered in Thailand
Over 50 million Covid vaccines have been administered in Thailand after a record-setting 1.4 million doses were administered on Friday, which was set as a goal to commemorate Mahidol day. Of the doses administered on Friday, over half of them represent the first dose for the patients. The remaining doses were a booster shot, says government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana. The…
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Sunday Covid-19 Afternoon Update: Provincial Totals
Today, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration update reported 12,353 new Covid-19 cases and 125 coronavirus-related deaths. In Thailand’s latest wave of the virus, which was first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has reported a total of 1,532,775 confirmed Covid-19 infections. The 12,353 daily Covid-19 infections in today’s update were made up mainly of 10,809 walk-in tests, while 1,000…
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Stolen 72 year old elephant returned to owner after 18 years
An elephant that was stolen 18 years ago was just reunited with her original owner after a Supreme Court ruling. The now 72 year old pachyderm was stolen from its Surin home in January of 2003 before being sold off to an elephant kraal – an enclosure that collects wild elephants to tame them, used for hundreds of years. The…
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Pattaya readjusts tourism goals for high season
Pattaya officials are trying to set more modest goals for the upcoming tourism season as an unnamed official says it is unlikely Pattaya will get a million tourists a month during the high season. Well, yeah! Tourism Business Association figure Bunawan Patanasin says if 200,000 visitors travel to Pattaya each month of the high season it will be considered a…
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Phuket relaxes checkpoint requirements to help tourists and health officials
Phuket is looking to bring in more domestic tourists and reduce the workload for healthcare officials who have to screen visitors, by reworking their health surveillance measures, says the provincial office. The measures are focused on the Chatchai checkpoint. Yesterday, Provincial governor Narong Woonciew announced that over 30,000 people have visited Phuket via the Sandbox programme that was launched 2…
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Phuket Covid-19: 2 deaths, 4 Sandbox infections, 10k total cases
In the last 24 hours, the Phuket Sandbox uncovered 4 new infections, the same as yesterday, and 2 people have died of Covid-19 in Phuket, bringing the total this week to 22 deaths. Today brought 219 new infections, the lowest since September 9, pushing the total infections in the third wave of Covid-19 starting the beginning of April over 10000…
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Thailand welcomes its first AI influencer, “AI Ailynn”
Thailand is jumping into the influencer marketing game SkyNet style, with the introduction of AI Ailynn, a metaverse human designed by SIA Bangkok, which styles itself a “virtual influencer agency”. AI Ailynn, their first artificial intelligence influencer will chat with users, pose for pictures, and influence people to buy things. The company’s website describes AI Ailynn as a 21 year…
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Umbrellas out, more monsoonal rain in the wake of ‘Dianmu’
With tropical depression Dianmu now well into the Bay of Bengal and continuing to weaken, another low depression sits over Thailand’s lower north, continuing to drop rain in most parts of the country. The region is also coming to the end of the annual typhoon season which whips up west-moving storms from the Pacific and into the South China Sea…
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