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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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7 more provinces classified by the CCSA as “dark red” zones under maximum control
7 more provinces are classified as “dark red” provinces under maximum control, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced today. Tight restrictions in dark red zones were imposed on Monday restricting interprovincial travel, limiting gatherings to no more than 5 people and ordering residents to stay at home from 9pm to 4am. Despite the new restrictions this week, the Covid-19…
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Police arrest 21 in Thong Lor party: drugs, alcohol, and birthday cake found
Thong Lor has again made the news for people partying. Recently, police raided a hotel room in Thong Lor, Bangkok. They arrested 21 suspects for allegedly taking drugs and breaking the emergency decree that forbids groups from gathering. The Thong Lor police were alerted that a hotel room on Soi Sukhumvit 31 was full of people being loud and not…
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BioNTech vaccine makes 10x more anitbodies than Sinovac
A recent Hong Kong study reports that people who are inoculated with the BioNTech vaccines have 10 times more antibodies than those who receive the Sinovac vaccine. While antibody numbers is not the only factor in a successful vaccine, the lower levels of neutralising antibodies in the Sinovac Vaccine may substantially lower its effectiveness. The study was published yesterday and…
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Survey: Deutsche Welle would like to know more about users
You’re a dw.com user? We’re interested in getting to know you better! We would like to invite you to participate in a short survey. It should only take around 5 to 10 minutes. The questionnaire is about your personal interests and your reasons for using DW. There are no right or wrong answers — you will help us best if…
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UPDATE: Germany hammered by floods, 93 dead; nearby countries also affected
The death toll in Germany has risen from 59 people to 93. Emergency responders are still looking for hundreds of missing people. Belgium also reports that they now have 12 dead, up from the 9 reported dead earlier today. Political leaders have asserted that climate change is to blame. Meanwhile, scientists had warned that such a catastrophic event could happen.…
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Phuket Sandbox looking ahead to Russian, UK travellers
While the daily rollercoaster ride of the Phuket Sandbox tourist launch, with the jump from 7 to 14 days, the last-minute approval, the problems getting a Certificate of Entry, and the few cases of Covid-19 infections, it’s easy to overlook the forest for the trees. But if viewed not as a full reopening to the pre-Covid-19 heydays but rather as…
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Friday Covid Update: 106,951 active cases; provincial totals
The number of active Covid-19 cases has surged past 100,000. Today, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 9,692 new Covid-19 cases, raising the number of infections currently being treated or monitored to 106,951. Another 67 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today. Since the start of the pandemic last year, 382,907 confirmed infections and 3,099 deaths. Bangkok remains the epicentre in the…
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Swimmers beware: 2 baby crocodiles found in Si Racha lagoon
Inhabitants of Si Racha, a district in the Chon Buri province, were taken aback to find 2 baby crocodiles lounging in a public park’s lagoon. A security guard, 52 year old Panna Poompanieng, discovered the 2 baby crocodiles. However, the local residents believe there may be even more scaled reptiles lurking in the lagoon. Panna, who guards the public park…
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Germany hammered by floods, 59 dead; nearby countries also affected
59 people, and counting, are dead in the west of Germany as floods hammer the country and other surrounding counties such as Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. The “extreme rainfall” pounded the city from Wednesday into Thursday. Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel, says she fears that the country will only see the full extent of the disaster as the days unfold.…
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11 new local Covid-19 infections today in Phuket
While Covid-19 infections are still relatively low in the Phuket Sandbox, especially compared to the rest of Thailand, today’s 11 infections mark the highest number of local daily infections since the Sandbox began. The Phuket Provincial Public Health Office released the figures today the bring the total number of Covid-19 infections found in the last 7 days to 42. While…
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Thai PM returns to Government House after third negative Covid test
The Thai PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha, does not have Covid-19 and returns to work at Government House today. The PM had been self-isolating for 14 days after coming into contact with Veerasak Pisanuwong from the Surin Chamber of Commerce, while visiting Phuket for the island’s sandbox re-opening on July 1. Veerasak subsequently tested positive for the virus. The Bangkok Post reports…
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Search party locates missing college student’s body in Chiang Mai
Northern Thailand’s Chiang Mai police have found the body of a college student who had been missing for 2 days. Rescue workers discovered the body in Doi Suthep Pui National team. Rescue workers say Nong Boss was hiking in the forest prior to going missing. Rescue workers, however, were not alone in their search efforts. More than 100 people had…
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Koh Samui’s tourism hopes pinned on international travellers
by Bill Barnett, c9hotelworks.com It’s baby steps at the moment as Thailand’s Robinson Crusoe-inspired, island-focused, international travel reopening plan rolls out in Koh Samui from July 15. Unlike the Phuket Sandbox program for vaccinated travellers, the Samui Plus sealed-route will test the water with a hybrid approach of 3 days in a hotel quarantine scenario and then allows visitor’s island-wide free…
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Thai industry representatives call on Health Minister to roll out vaccines in factories
Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul will meet with the Federation of Thai Industries next week as the FTI calls for Covid-19 vaccines to be rolled out in factories. FTI chairman Supant Mongkolsuthree says the factory rollout is a priority as the surge in infections is causing some sites to close. To date, just 10% of around 10 million industrial workers…
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Indonesia now Asia’s Covid-19 epicentre as daily cases exceed India
Indonesia has become the epicentre of Covid-19 in Asia as the daily case count has exceeded India’s. The country reported 56,757 new cases and 982 coronavirus-related deaths yesterday, surpassing India’s count of 39,072 new cases and 544 deaths. With the highest number of daily cases, the archipelago country of 270 million people is now the new Covid-hotspot in Asia, and…
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Covid-19 crisis unfolding across several Asian nations
Just as the US and Europe are gradually emerging from the devastation brought by Covid-19, the pandemic is wreaking havoc across Asia. Earlier this week, Indonesia overtook India as the epicentre of the virus, reporting over 54,000 new infections and 991 deaths in a single day. Just a month ago, daily new infections were averaging 8,000. Indonesian officials are concerned…
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Thai Red Cross Society to give 1 million Moderna vaccines free
As Thailand’s vaccination rollout plods along with Sinovac vaccines that have little effectiveness against the Delta variant of Covid-19 and AstraZeneca production far behind schedule, many nervous Thai citizens are looking to private hospitals and third party groups importing more effective vaccines to turn the tides in the battle against Covid-19. This week has seen a step forward as Thailand’s…
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EU left behind as US pushes ‘vaccine diplomacy’ in Southeast Asia
The European Union’s international vaccine drive runs the risk of falling behind other major international powers, especially in Southeast Asia, where the United States is ramping up their vaccine-donation programs to compete with China’s contributions. US President Joe Biden pledged in May to donate 80 million vaccines worldwide from America’s domestic-supply, of which approximately 75% will be shared through the…
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A battle for sacred lands as nature wins new rights
In Uganda’s Albertine Rift, an immense network of grasslands and mountains that supports great biodiversity, two energy giants are preparing to extract the largest onshore oil deposit in sub-Saharan Africa. SOURCE: DW News
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3 men arrested in Sinopharm vaccine scam
A vaccine scam was broken up with 3 men alleged to have pretended to be doctors to sell people Sinopharm vaccines that did not exist. Police have identified and apprehended 3 men they believe to be the perpetrators of the scam that saw men posing as doctors in order to take payments for vaccines appointments that never actually existed. The…
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Meeting reveals Thai vs foreigners in Phuket Sandbox, other stats
Statistics and data regarding the Phuket Sandbox can be cloudy and conflicting, but at yesterday’s meeting of the Phuket Communicable Disease Committee, some rarely shared figures were discussed. One often questioned detail is how many people in the numbers reported for international traveller arrivals are truly tourists and how many are even foreigners at all. During the meeting, it was…
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BioNTech says there are no talks with Thonburi Healthcare for vaccines
Following reports that the Thonburi Healthcare Group in Thailand was planning to sign an agreement for 20 million doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine, Germany BioNTech said it was not in talks with the Thai hospital group. In an email sent to Reuters reporters, BioNTech said “We are not in negotiations with the company you mentioned below about vaccine supply.” The…
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Royal Thai Army to help tighten overland checkpoint into Phuket
Following reports of insufficient security on the land borders into Phuket, the Phuket Communicable Disease Committee made the decision to have the Royal Thai Army assist in monitoring the Phuket Checkpoint at Tha Chatchai for Covid-19 safety. There have been concerns that the land crossing into Phuket is understaffed and not secure. The committee meeting was Chaired by Phuket Governor…
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Nakhon Ratchasima Police arrest 2 suspects in Facebook/Line scam
Today, police from northeastern Thailands’ Nakhon Ratchasima province arrested 2 suspects for being part of an alleged Facebook hacking gang. The announcement comes from a press conference the police held. The gang reportedly duped Korat girls into transferring money to them by posing as the girls’ relatives. The case starts back in March when Chalermluck Phuwasawat, the victim of the…
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Bangkok taxi driver faces fines, license suspension, training classes after passenger complains about ride
A Bangkok taxi driver has been fined, has his license suspended, and has to take a training class after his erratic behaviour unnerved a passenger. The passenger posted online about the eccentric taxi ride that was supposed to take them from Victory Monument to Klong 6, Pathum Thani, last Sunday. However, the passenger cut the ride short and got off…
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Army files defamation complaint against social media users over “fake news”
Following rumours spread on social media saying Thai soldiers travelling to the US for Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines when they were actually going overseas for parachute training, the Royal Thai Army filed a defamation complaint against 9 people who allegedly spread the so-called “fake news.” A representative from the army filed a complaint with the Nang Loeng police station yesterday on…
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Pattaya still eyes September reopening despite Covid-19 surge
The Pattaya Move On programme to reopen one of Thailand’s most popular tourist destinations to international travellers is facing an uphill battle as the Chon Buri province faces unrelenting growth in Covid-19 infections. Despite continued infections, the Chon Buri Tourism Council plans to push forward the reopening plan set to begin in September. The province has recorded over 13,500 Covid-19 infections…
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Monk uses electric cart on morning alms, other monks reportedly not thrilled
A monk in the central Thai province of Ang Thong is being chastised by his higher-ups for using an electric cart to expedite his morning alms. The higher-ups have called his actions “inappropriate”. Wanchai Dhammatharo of Ang Thong City’s Wat Channimitr has been ordered by the chief of the Ang Thong Provincial Office of Buddhism, Sakdanai Woradetch, and Sakdani’s team…
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Vaccines are latest regional power play in the Middle East
Last week, Egypt announced that it had successfully manufactured its first million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. It’s an important step for Egypt’s 104 million people, of whom only about 1% are fully vaccinated. But it could also be seen as progress toward the country’s foreign policy goals, as vaccine diplomacy gathers pace in the Middle East. Vaccine diplomacy refers…
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With Covid-19, Tourism Ministry mulls new reopening strategy
The Tourism and Sports Ministry is reevaluating the plans for reopening Thailand and its tourism hubs as Covid-19 infections are rising all over the country. While they admit that the surge in Covid-19 is a major health and safety issue, they insist on the necessity of reopening and restarting the tourism economy and get Bangkok reopened in particular. Minister of…
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