News
Stay up-to-date with the latest news from across Thailand and beyond with The Thaiger. Our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from this stunning part of the world, covering a diverse range of topics, including local politics, business, culture, and tourism. Keep yourself informed about the Kingdom’s rich history, stunning landscapes, and thriving expat communities, as well as updates on events, attractions, and transportation.
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Suez Canal: Container ship freed, traffic moving again
World shipping is now playing catch up after the Suez Canal traffic started moving again. The huge Ever Given container ship has been dislodged and is now heading to a shipyard for inspections. The container ship was stuck, sideways, in the Suez Canal for nearly a week with over 300 ships waiting at either end of the canal to get…
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Thai government denies Burmese refugees are being pushed back over the border
The Thai government has denied media reports that Burmese refugees fleeing the conflict in Myanmar are being pushed back over the border. Tanee Sangrat from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs insists that news reports claiming some Karen villagers who arrived in Thailand had been forced to return to Myanmar are false. “Those reports cite information solely from non-official sources without…
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Phuket wants Chinese tourists to jump-start sandbox scheme
Phuket wants Chinese tourists to jump – start its sandbox scheme which will let vaccinated international visitors enter the Andaman island without undergoing quarantine as of July 1. The targetting of Chinese visitors comes after data revealed that they contributed to 1/5 of the pre-Covid economy. The move to allow tourists to enter without undergoing quarantine is important as officials…
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Health Ministry says border guards will be prioritised for Covid vaccines
Thailand’s Health Ministry says border guards will be prioritised for Covid-19 vaccines, due to the risk of Burmese refugees fleeing into the Kingdom to escape violence in Myanmar. Since a February 1 military coup in the neighbouring country, the situation has deteriorated rapidly, with thousands of villagers crossing into the northern province of Mae Hong Son at the weekend. They…
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Thai Chamber of Commerce calls for vaccine delivery to be speeded up
The chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce says officials hope to reinvigorate the economy within 99 days, through a “Connect the Dots” policy. Sanan Angubolkul adds that the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines must be speeded up if the economy is to recover in that timeframe. “Thailand is slow in distributing vaccines. This will result in a slow economic recovery.”…
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Child shoots and kills 5 year old with gun he thought was fake
A 5 years old Burmese boy in Chon Buri was shot and killed while playing him and 2 other children were playing with a gun. The children found the gun, a long, Thai-made .22 rifle, at their house. They thought the gun was fake and started playing with it. Then, a 11 year old boy pulled the trigger, shooting his 5…
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Thailand News Today | Thai gov won’t evacuate citizens from Myanmar, Suez Canal latest | March 29
On today’s program, the Thai government say they’ll help any companies affected by the blockage of the Suez Canal, the Thai Government says they’re not going to evacuate Thai citizens from Myanmar at this time, and random drink drive testing is going to start rolling out around Bangkok from this Wednesday. But we start off today with a shout out…
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Court says prison guards violated detained protesters’ human rights
The multiple late-night attempts to take the detained protest leaders out of their prison cells for random Covid-19 testing was a violation of their human rights, the Criminal Court ruled today. The court said inmates can only be removed from their cell, even for Covid-19 testing, during “normal hours.” No action was taken against the prison guards. Human rights lawyer…
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Phuket unemployment rates rise, average monthly income drops
With the lack of foreign tourists visiting Phuket, many tourism-dependent businesses have suffered. Officials have reported a spike in unemployment in Phuket and say average monthly income has dropped down to 1,900 baht. Government officials are now discussing potential measures for economic rehabilitation on the island province as well as the so-called “sandbox” travel scheme, which is expected to help…
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CCSA Update: 39 new Covid-19 cases
39 new Covid-19 cases were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. Thailand now has 1,366 active cases. Since the start of the pandemic, the CCSA has reported a total of 28,773 coronavirus infections and 94 deaths. Out of the 39 new cases, 16 were local transmissions linked to high risk areas including Bangkok, Samut Sakhon,…
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1,000 foreign tourists expected to travel to Koh Samui in July
Koh Samui may have 1,000 foreign visitors arrive on the island in July. As part of the “sandbox” tourism scheme, also set to launch in Phuket on July 1, allows tourists who are vaccinated against Covid-19 to travel to specific destinations in Thailand that have reached herd immunity. Thailand just launched its vaccination campaign a month ago. Now, both Koh…
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Stuck ship partially freed, Thai exports look to bypass Suez
The massive container ship stuck in the Suez Canal, the world’s busiest trade routes, has been partially freed and refloated. The 400-metre cargo ship was pushed off track by strong wind and has been wedged sideways, blocking the trade route in Egypt. Thai exporters have been looking into bypassing the Suez Canal and some may still have to seek extensions…
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Crackdown on drink driving in Bangkok starting April 1
With bars and nightclubs now back open, Bangkok police plan to crackdown on drink driving. DUI checkpoints will be set up around the city starting on April 1, according to Thai media. Bangkok is still classified as an “orange zone” by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In orange zones, bars and nightclubs are ordered to close at 11pm while…
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Government ready to assist Thai businesses affected by Suez Canal blockage
The Thai government says it’s ready to help businesses affected by the blockage of the Ever Given cargo ship in Egypt’s Suez Canal. The 400-metre container ship was blown off course and got stuck sideways in the canal last Tuesday, leading to chaos in world shipping. The blockage in one of the world’s most significant trading routes has caused a…
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Thailand to improve safety for ziplining and adventure tourism
Looking ahead to the return of foreign tourists, Thailand tourism officials are planning to improve safety standards for adventure activities like ziplining in an effort to prevent accidents from happening and to gain tourist confidence. In 2019, a Canadian man died in a zipline incident in Chiang Mai. He was attached to the harness, ready for the 5 kilometre Flight…
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Officials say woman who tested positive after vaccination was infected beforehand
The Disease Control Department says a vaccinated seafood vendor in Bangkok who tested positive for Covid-19 was infected with the virus prior to receiving the jab. Sophon Iamsirsithavorn from the DCD says the 29 year old market trader was tested for the virus on March 13, with that test coming back negative. At the time, she was not showing any…
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Thousands of displaced Burmese flee to Thailand following military air strikes
As the situation escalates in Myanmar, and fears grow that civil war is about to break out, around 3,000 displaced Burmese villagers have fled to Thailand. The Bangkok Post reports that on Saturday, the Burmese army launched an air offensive on a village controlled by an armed ethnic group. The village in the southeastern Karen state is close to the…
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Phuket businesses welcome quarantine-free re-opening plan
Businesses on the southern island of Phuket have welcomed the government’s approval of a quarantine-free re-opening for vaccinated foreigners from July 1. From that date, Phuket will become the first province to waive mandatory quarantine for international arrivals who have been vaccinated against Covid-19. The re-opening is expected to generate over 84 billion baht. Like many parts of the country…
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Phetchaburi man bludgeons wife to death, shoots himself
A man in Phetchaburi allegedly bludgeoned his wife to death before committing suicide yesterday, according to local authorities. It appears that Wichai Leeka, a 43 year old auto tyre repairman, beat his young wife, 21 year old Thanthip Pothong to death with a steel bar, before using a shotgun to take his own life with a shot to the head.…
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Bank of Thailand wrestles with cryptocurrency adoption
The Bank of Thailand is wrestling with cryptocurrency – how to adopt its usage and how to regulate it in the face of growing popularity, along with all the dynamics surrounding the new ‘currencies’.. The BOT admits they’re struggling with balancing the innovation in the financial world and protecting investors in a volatile and unstable market. Digital currency fluctuates much…
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Can Koh Pha Ngan’s Full Moon Party recover from Covid-19 hiatus?
After a year long hiatus, can Thailand’s world-famous Full Moon Party recover, or will it evolve in the post-Covid-19 era? Before April last year, Haad Rin Beach on Koh Pha Ngan was invaded each full moon by backpackers and partygoers. The beach hummed to the thump, thump of the music and the buckets of exotic cocktails (and plenty of other…
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64 protesters arrested as Government House protest camp cleared
64 protesters were taken into custody as police cleared the sites of a Government House demonstration camp early this morning. The site, located at Phra Ram 5 by the Khlong Phadung Krungkasem canal near the Government House, was raided at 6am by 4 battalions of the police’s Protection and Crowd Control Division. The protesters, many still asleep at the time,…
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More than 100 Burmese citizens killed in the past 24 hours – Myanmar military defies international demands
The reported killing of protesters and Burmese citizens by Myanmar’s Tatmadaw of over 100 people in the past 24 hours, makes Saturday, March 27 the single deadliest day since February 1 coup. The number of Burmese civilians reported killed since the coup has reached 440 people. On the BBC, more than 90 deaths were confirmed by the Assistance Association for…
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Thailand aims for 30 million vaccines by August
Thailand is aiming for 30 million vaccines throughout the country by August in a new plan announced by the Public Health Ministry. The vaccinations will take place across all 77 provinces (76 plus Bangkok) in a progressive rollout. 100,000 people have received injections already in the national vaccination schedule, with 300,000 more set to be vaccinated in the next phase…
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Crude oil imports to Thailand at lowest level since 2015
Crude oil imports to Thailand were down in 2020 to the lowest level since 2015, according to data from Thailand’s energy department. Total imports fell 19,000 barrels per day from 2019 figures, down to 837,000 barrels. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, domestic production also dropped along with the reduction in oil importing. Thai refineries decreased their production to 1 million…
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A guide to being respectful when visiting a Buddhist temple in Thailand
Not all tourists do their research before going to a temple. Some take photos with Buddha statues in a way that is disrespectful to some Thais. Some don’t dress appropriately. A security guard at the popular Wat Arun in Bangkok would blow a whistle at many tourists, telling them to cover their shoulders and knees. Here’s a guide on how…
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All about Muay Thai, Thailand’s national sport
Muay Thai or Thai Boxing is Thailand’s cultural martial art and national sport. The origins of Muay Thai date back hundreds of years ago as modern-day Thai people needed a strong form of close-combat that used the entire body as a weapon to fight off those in neighbouring countries who were constantly trying to invade Siam, the former name of present…
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16 year old Thai may be jailed in alleged lèse-majesté case
A 16 year old Thai teenager may be jailed for alleged defamation against the Thai monarchy at a pro-democracy protest last Wednesday by wearing a crop-top with an anti-monarchy slogan written on his stomach. The teen is being charged under Thailand’s lèse-majesté law, informally called “Section 112”, the section that covers defaming, insulting or threatening members of the Thai royal…
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Phuket to open on July 1 – first in Thailand
by Andrew J. Wood In a move largely expected after intense lobbying from the huge Travel and Tourism industry here in Thailand, the government approved the waiving of quarantine requirements for vaccinated visitors arriving on Phuket from July 1, the first significant reopening for the popular tourism destination. An economic panel chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday approved the proposal…
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At least 16 shot and killed by Myanmar military on Armed Forces Day
At least 16 people are dead after Myanmar’s military fired shots at protesters today despite it being Armed Forces Day. Despite widespread condemnation, the Burmese junta leader issued a statement that the military will “continue to protect its people and strive for democracy”. The protesters seemed to defy the military’s warnings that they could be shot in the head and…
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