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. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
-
Sponsored
Enjoy sunset cocktails at the iconic AIR BAR in Koh Samui
AIR BAR is one of the InterContinental Koh Samui Resort's crown jewels, a must-visit spot that perfectly captures the island's beauty. In addition to its stunning vistas, AIR BAR offers an impressive selection of craft cocktails, premium spirits, and refreshing...
-
“The greatest propaganda machine in history” – Sacha Baron Cohen slams Facebook
“The Silicon Six – all billionaires, all Americans – who care more about boosting their share price than about protecting democracy.” Speaking at the Anti Defamation League’s International Leadership summit, actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen caned Facebook and other social media as “the greatest propaganda machine in history.” Sacha was accepting an award when he opened up on his thoughts…
-
Child porn website based in Chiang Mai busted
Chiang Mai police have arrested the operator of a child pornography website in a raid on his condominium in the northern city. Police and the Thailand Internet Crimes Against Children unit apprehended 24 year old Thai national Korakot Chulthong on Saturday. They also seized seized three mobile phones, a laptop computer, two portable disk drives, bank passbooks and ATM cards.…
-
Thailand improves marine pollution ranking
Thailand’s ranking among the 20 biggest marine plastic plastic polluters has improved by four places, from sixth to tenth, as ranked by Mass of Mismanaged Plastic Waste. The permanent secretary for natural resources and environment says the improvement is largely thanks to government initiatives and the efforts of the public and the private sector in reducing single-use plastic bags and…
-
Two suspects in Yala’s November 5 deadly attacks, shot and killed
Authorities have shot and killed two men suspected in deadly attacks in southern Thailand earlier this month. Fifteen people, mostly volunteers, staffing a security checkpoint in Yala province were shot and killed when it was ambushed by gunmen. A day after the attacks, PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha authorised curfews in nine districts of Southern Thailand. The two suspected leaders of local insurgent cells…
-
German tourist dies after being hit by parasail speedboat off Phuket
PHOTO: Achadtaya Chuenniran Police are investigating the circumstances of an incident on Kamala Beach on Friday afternoon where a swimmer was killed after being struck by a speedboat used to tow paying parasail passengers into the sky. A German tourist has died after being seriously injured by a speedboat propellor while swimming off Phuket’s Kamala beach. The victim was a 63…
-
Paralyzed Canadian hockey player moves legs after experimental Thai surgery
A Canadian hockey player paralyzed in a tragic bus crash has begun moving his legs after receiving experimental spinal surgery in Thailand. Ryan Straschnitzki was one of 13 injured when a truck ran a stop sign and collided with the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team’s bus in Saskatchewan in 2018. Sixteen others died in the incident. Straschnitzki was paralyzed from…
-
‘The Cave’ – covers a lot of ground but misses some key details
The Thaiger went to the first session of Tom Waller’s ‘The Cave’ and loved it. It’s frenetic, it’s very busy and it covers a lot of territory regarding the scope of the saga. But it also lacks focus, a lot of the actors play themselves with varying success and, well, we already know the (mostly) happy ending. But the overall experience…
-
Tourism authorities refurbish old klongs as new tourist attractions in Bangkok
Bangkok’s old nickname “Venice of the East” is slowly coming back to life as tourism and local municipal authorities aim to make-over some of the city’s famous klongs (canals) as new tourist attractions. Khlong Prawet Burirom runs east from the city towards Suvarnabhumi Airport. In May this year one of the old klongs, the King Lord Klong,was extensively refurbished and…
-
4,000 chickens buried alive in Thailand’s south
WARNING: Some readers will find the story upsetting PHOTOS: Khaosod An upsetting video was been posted online showing almost 4,000 chickens being destroyed by being buried alive. They were thrown in one by one into a pit filled with mud. Many Netizens slammed the authorities saying this is extremely cruel and questioned whether it was necessary to deal with the…
-
Indian man posing as a pilot bought fake Lufthansa ID in Bangkok
PHOTO: DNA India “The passenger disclosed that he used to shoot YouTube videos on aviation and had obtained the Lufthansa fake ID card in Bangkok.” It was all going so well, until he was eventually caught. An Indian man who regularly pretended to be a pilot, in order to get free upgrades and impress women, has been arrested in Delhi…
-
Security forces kill two suspected insurgents in Thailand’s south
Two men suspected of being Islamic insurgents have been shot dead by security forces in Pattani, southern Thailand. The two militants were believed to be members of the National Revolutionary Front, Thai PBS World reports that officials received a tip-off that the men were hiding out at a property in Khlong Tan Yong. The house was surrounded by the military…
-
Fossils of new dinosaur species discovered in Isaan
The fossils of a new species of dinosaur, named the Siam Raptor Suwati, have been discovered in Nakhon Ratchasima province (commonly known as Korat) in north-east Thailand. The discovery has been confirmed by the Director-General of the Mineral Resource Department, Sommai Techawan, and former Deputy PM Suwat Liptapanlop (after whom the dinosaur has been named). Thai Residents reports that the…
-
Chiang Mai Airshow ready to take off in February 2020
The first Chiang Mai International Airshow 2020 will be the largest event of its type in the north of Thailand and will take place from the February 21 – 23 next year. Tourism officials and the San Kamphaeng district chief held a news conference to promote an airshow that will be held in the district. The location will be the “Chiang Mai Air…
-
Pattaya’s Walking Street is “heaving with tourists”. But…
PHOTOS: Pattaya City Law Enforcement Walking Street is “heaving with tourists”. Pictures posted on the “Pattaya City Law Enforcement” site indicate an encouraging sign for tourism in Thailand’s ‘sin city’ seaside resort. According to the post, it appears Pattaya’s famous soi of ‘boom boom’ is having a boom in tourism numbers. But Thai netizens say there is a backstory. Whilst…
-
Chinese medical tourism on the rise in Thailand
FILE PHOTO Despite Thailand’s current sluggish tourism intake, along with a strong baht, Chinese medical tourism continues to grow. From rhinoplasty to liposuction, eye-surgery to heart bypasses, Thailand’s reputation for affordable and reputable cosmetic surgery, and specialty clinics, draws tourists from all over the world. As of 2019, with 64 accredited hospitals, Thailand is currently among the top 10 medical…
-
UPDATE: Police investigate building collapse in Phuket, killing seven
PHOTOS: Phuket Hotnews UPDATE: Kritsana Pattanachareon, deputy spokesperson for the Royal Thai Police, says that an initial investigation into the collapse of a petrol station being built in Thalang, Phuket on Thepkasattri Road, resulting in seven deaths, indicated that poor construction standards were to blame. “We were informed by police from the Thalang district station that a concrete slab being…
-
Girl faints on Bangkok street, wakes up in hospital with 300K missing
A Facebook User ‘โรจน์ โชว์รูม’ posted online calling for help. He relates the story that at 4.30pm on Itsaraphap Road on Monday “my girlfriend had just withdrawn 320,000 baht from a bank”. “She fainted on the road and when she regained consciousness the brown envelope with cash inside was gone. If anyone saw what happened, please contact me at 0971415777.”…
-
Four Cambodian monks to be deported after raising funds around Krabi
FILE PHOTO: Bigstock Police in Krabi have arrested four monks from Cambodia after complaints from Krabi locals that the monks were attempting to raise funds at different venues as they travelled around the south. Krabi Police chief Sompong Chingduang confirmed that the four were found to have entered Thailand a week ago without the correct paperwork. The monks will now…
-
British tourist nabbed in Pattaya after overstaying visa by 26 days
PHOTO: Naew Na A British man has been arrested at an apartment in the Pattaya suburb of Nong Prue after overstaying his visa by 26 days. Naew Na news says the man, named as 45 year old Stellios Shakallis, was arrested as part of a random check carried out by Immigration police in the area. It’s understood he will now…
-
China slams US bill on Hong Kong rights
PHOTO: Reuters China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi condemns the passing by US Congress of a bill designed to protect the rights of Hong Kong citizens, accusing the US of “trying to destroy Hong Kong”. The Daily Star quotes the minister as saying the bill “indulges violent criminals” and seeks to “muddle or even destroy Hong Kong” with China vowing to…
-
Five Chinese awaiting deportation after being arrested in Phuket over illegal FOREX trading
PHOTO: SCMP Five Chinese are now in custody after being arrested over the running of an illegal online foreign-exchange. They were running the business from a residential housing estate in Chalong, Phuket. Phuket Immigration officers raided the rented property in the Baan Maneekram-Jomthong Thani estate in Chalong at the end of October. The five were arrested and taken to the…
-
‘False killer whale’ rescued after being washed ashore in Pattaya
PHOTO: Chaiyot Pupattanapong – Bangkok Post (enhancement – The Thaiger) A large dolphin species called the False Killer Whale, resembling a black killer whale, is undergoing treatment after it was found washed ashore on a Pattaya beach on Wednesday. The Bangkok Post reports that the whale was found by a fisherman on a beach in the Bang Lamung district of…
-
Thai exports down 4.5% in October, 2.35% for the year
PHOTO: Commerce Ministry Thai exports have crashed 4.5% for October 2019, compared with the same month last year. The total contraction in first 10 months of this year has now averaged 2.35%, and things don’t look like improving any time soon, according to the Commerce Ministry, as reported in the Bangkok Post. The director-general of the ministry’s Trade Policy and…
-
AoT green lights new terminal for Suvarnabhumi to double capacity
PHOTO: Artists impression of the original Suvarnabhumi terminal – Royal Thai Embassy The Airports of Thailand has approved a plan to establish a second terminal on the northern part of Suvarnabhumi Airport. The board has also agreed to discount landing fees for international charter flights at six airports under AoT control for the next five months. The AoT controlled airports are…
-
Pope Francis calls for action on exploitation of children, human trafficking
PHOTO: Government House Pope Francis was making calls for migrants to be made welcome and women and children to be protected from exploitation and abuse. The comments were made during the second day of activities for the leader of the world’s catholic church in Thailand today. The irony of the Pope’s comments would have surprised many with the Catholic Church…
-
It was THAT big! Pattaya fisherman snares a REALLY big sea mammal.
PHOTO: The Nation A large dolphin species, called a “false killer whale”, was beached in Pattaya yesterday. The beaching happened after after local Jirayu Wanphusit was shore-fishing when he noticed a small tug on his line. The tug became a full on drag as the fishing rod, and Jirayu, were pulled into the water. His pursuit of the ‘best bar…
-
Construction site collapse, kills 7, injures at least 2 in Phuket
PHOTOS: Newshawk Phuket Seven people are now dead and at least 2 injured following the collapse of a petrol station construction site near the Home Pro building in Thepkasattri Road in Thalang, northern Phuket. The latest source of deaths and injuries comes from Thai Rath. Construction labourers were stuck under an enormous slab of concrete early this afternoon at 12.50pm.…
-
Elderly British expat tries to save Thai man from bridge suicide attempt
A 70 year old British expat tried unsuccessfully to prevent a depressed Thai man jumping from a bridge in Pattaya yesterday. The Pattaya News reports that police were notified around 5.30pm and rushed to the scene at a pedestrian bridge on Sukhumvit Road, where a 45 year old Thai man, named by police as Boontieng Saokaew, lay injured. It’s understood that…
-
Spaniard will now apply for pardon after murder conviction upheld by Supreme Court
PHOTO: EPA/Narong Sangnak A Spanish man found guilty of the 2016 murder of a fellow citizen in Bangkok has failed in his bid to have his conviction overturned. The Nation reported that Artur Segarra Princep will now apply for a royal pardon after the Supreme Court upheld the conviction on Wednesday. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction and the death sentence…
-
Roadside bomb injures 3 police in Narathiwat
PHOTO: A similar roadside bomb attack in Narathiwat on July 16 this year. – Bangkok Post Three policemen have been injured, one of them seriously, by a bomb believed to have been planted by insurgents in the southern border province of Narathiwat. The three officers were part of a team of six traffic police deployed at a checkpoint. The bomb was…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.