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.
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Manhunt on for six suspects in the Sungai Golok attacks
Army offices and local police are now hunting down six men for suspected involvement in last night’s attacks in Narathiwat. The six men are suspected of being involved in bomb explosions at three residential areas in Sungai Golok district, injuring 13 people. (Sungai Golok is the last town in Thailand before you cross over the Malaysian border) Police also note…
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Phuket International Airport prepares for Songkran
Phuket International Airport held a ceremony yesterday to announce its readiness for security and necessary services during the Songkran Festival which starts officially on Friday but already sees increased traffic at the airport. The event took place in the parking lot near exit number 6 of the international terminal. Phuket’s Vice Governor, Thavorn Kongkaew, hosted the ceremony yesterday (April 9).…
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6 killed, 44 injured in another bus crash in Tak
Another crash, again involving a bus carrying Burmese workers back home for Songkran. Six Burmese migrants have killed and 44 others were injured when a bus taking them from Tak to Chachoengsao lost control and crashed down a roadside hill last night (Monday). Pol Capt Kiarttisak Boonplong, deputy inspector of Mae Thor police station, said 28 of the injured workers…
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‘Death Island’ in the news again after alleged rape of British woman
Koh Tao, off Koh Samui in the Surat Thani province, is in the spotlight again after a British woman claimed a 26 year old French man had raped her in a hotel on the island. The woman, whose name has been withheld, first alerted her mother in the UK to the alleged attack. The British Embassy in Bangkok stepped in…
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EU set to change its tune on Thai fishing
Yesterday southern fishermen in Songkhla, Pattani and Trang were threatening to go on strike if the Thai government didn’t lift restrictions imposed on them to help satisfy demands by the EU over illegal fishing practices. Today a representative from the EU is pouring praise on the Thai government for its actions to clean up the industry. Smells fishy!? The Nation…
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Southern violence injures four – attacks in Sungai Golok and Pattani
Violence continues in two deep southern provinces last night (Monday), injuring at least four people. Initial reports said that at least four people were injured when bomb attacks hit Narathiwat’s Sungai Golok district and Pattani provinces. In Sungai Kolok, the bomb attacks took place in two areas, injuring at least three. In Pattani, the explosion seriously injured a volunteer, identified…
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Thailand’s zoo horrors captured by British photographer
PHOTO: Aaron Gekoski A British photographer has had a sickening series of photos published in thesun.co.uk after witnessing what he described as “a wildlife house of horrors”. 37 year old environmental photojournalist Aaron Gekoski says he witnessed the shows on a tour of Thailand’s zoos and will now campaign for more restrictions over the industry. In the article he claims……
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“100% interest in 15 days.” Fraudster rips off students.
22 year old Bangkok student ‘Tanya’, along with a Phuket friend who’s still at high school, have made a complaint with crime suppression police to complain about a Thai woman who has ripped them off in a fake loan scheme. They claim that they’ve been conned out of 24,500 baht but say they believe there are 200 victims involved in…
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Krabi’s Emerald Pond defaced by tourist graffiti
The famous Emerald Pond in Krabi has been defaced with hand writings and scratches by visitors while the Chief of Khao Pra Bangkram Non-Hunting Area is preparing to prosecute anyone who is caught writing or scratching their names in the stones there. An approximately 1 metre long area of the Emerald Pond is covered in hastily-scratched handwriting, names and pictures.…
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Thai soap opera inspires traditional dress for ID cards
The Thai soap opera ‘Buppae Sanniwas’ (Love Destiny) is the hot ticket at the moment inspiring Thais to get back to their historical roots and ‘Thainess’, even for official documents. Some Thai ladies have even gone so far as to dress in traditional outfits to take pictures for their ID cards in Phuket. At Phuket Municipality Office a local woman,…
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Burmese workers lucky to escape burning van after crash in Tak
PHOTO: Facebook Fourteen Myanmar migrant workers and a Thai van driver where lucky to escape after their van caught fire after a tyre burst. The burst caused the van to lose control. The van ran off the road into a ditch along side this morning. The van didn’t flip over but the inhabitants were shaken. Luckily they all got out quickly…
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Insurgents fire on police checkpoints in Narathiwat
Southern insurgents have fired at roadside checkpoints in two locations and a marine post in Narathiwat’s Bacho district last night (Sunday). No one was injured in the three attacks. Police and a unit of marines went to inspect the location of the attacks this morning (Monday). Police say that insurgents fired at the road checkpoint in Ban Batu village in…
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What’s open and what’s closed during Songkran?
The Songkran Silly Season’ is almost upon us and along with the break comes official public holidays. This year’s Songkran runs, officially, from April 13 – 16 (this Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday). But many will be taking this Thursday off as well as the following Tuesday to make the Thai New Year long weekend even longer. You should expect…
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Take an air-conditioned rest on Songkran roads this year
Police have prepared air-conditioned accommodation for motorists who might feel tired after a long drive during the Songkran holidays, a police chief said on Monday. Highway police commander Pol Maj Gen Chut Sukkaewnarong says toilet facilities would also be made available for motorists but added that since the number of temporary accommodation spots was limited, motorists were advised to check…
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Vale Chef Ronnie
Filipino celebrity chef Ronnie Macuja, who opened ultra chic VSet Restaurant and Bar at Chalong Pier showcasing his modern Mediterranean/Asian cuisine, as well as Higher Restaurant at Seduction nightclub in Patong, and more recently at Café Del Mar, died suddenly in the early hours of Friday morning. Ronnie’s chef career started at the Manila Hilton. They offered him a two…
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The Great Expedition – finding the Ancient Road To Kamala
The Great Expedition continues to find the famed Ancient Route To Kamala from the sleepy Kathu valley. In our second attempt to get over the hill from tracks off Soi Namtok (leading to the Kathu Waterfall) our intrepid adventurers failed again to find the Great Hidden Track. Last time we headed up the road where tourists are taken for the…
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Looming fishing strike over government IUU restrictions
PHOTO: The Nation Southern fisherman are threatening to strike to put pressure on the Government to ease restrictions on what’s called illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing practices. New technologies and other improvements have been introduced in the Thai fishing fleet in efforts to get the nation removed from the European Union’s “watch list” for illegal fishing. Fishermen claim the restrictions are…
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Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit – Risk-taking billionaire pursuing social justice
New blood politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit may have led his family auto-parts business to international success but he remains a socialist in his economic philosophy and a political liberal, with a passion for social justice. The 40 year old has been in the spotlight for less than two months since he announced the formation of the new Future Forward Party. But…
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Kids from around Asia head to Pattaya for Thai Optimist National Championships
PHOTO: Thailand Optimist National Championships – Guy Nowell By Duncan Worthington Thailand’s premier youth sailing event is just around the corner. The Thailand Optimist National Championships, held as part of the Top of the Gulf Regatta, will see more than 100 youngsters from around Thailand and Asia compete over three days (April 29 to May 1, 2018) in Pattaya. First sailed…
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Closing Maya Bay – Tough steps to save reeling paradise
By Piyaporn Wongruang The young American backpacker Richard found his way to Bangkok, arriving in Khao San Road bustling with backpackers, before venturing further to a so-called paradise, where he joined the neo-hippie lifestyle pursued by a number of adventurous tourists who arrived before him. It’s Maya Bay on Phi Phi Island, famously chosen as the so-called paradise setting for…
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We’re in for a bumper Songkran this year
Economists are predicting a bumper Songkran festival this year due to a number of factors. he University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce’s Centre for Economic and Business Forecasting says surveys indicate that Thai new year revellers are showing greater willingness to spend more this year. They estimate there will be 3-5% growth in spending which they predict will bring…
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Vendors hit back at criticism of Bangkok’s Mae Klong market
by Kachorn Phonimthai Vendors at Mae Klong, also known as Rom Hup – one of Thailand’s landmark markets – have defended its quirkiness and surroundings after coming under criticism online. They have spoken up to defend the world-famous market after several foreigners made critical comments on a BBC News video clip titled “The train that drives through a market”. Uploaded…
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Natnicha killed in car crash in Ayutthaya
An actress was killed when her BMW car crashed into a tree on a roadside in Ayutthaya province on Saturday morning. 21 year old Natnicha Cherdchubupphakaree died when her car plunged into the roadside on highway No 9 on the Saraburi-bound side in Tambon Chiang Rak Noi, Bang Pa-in district. Police suspect the car was speeding and lost control as…
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Russian woman slashes her throat in Patong convenience store
The videos of a 41 year old Russian woman trying to cut her own throat inside a 7-11 in Patong have gone viral. The videos were captured on the store’s CCTV as well as staff mobile phones. The videos show a woman wearing a yellow-black shirt and black trousers cutting her throat in front of a fridge at a store…
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Phuket OrBorJor introduces 34 beach lifeguards for 5 beaches in Thalang
Phuket’s Governor Plodthong, together with an armada of local authorities and media, hosted an opening ceremony for the operation of Thalang Beach Lifeguards on April 5. “There are a lot of tourists that drown or get harmed from accidents in the sea every year because they either don’t understand the red flags, can’t or don’t read the warning signs, the…
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Boracay’s closure sparks global travel fallout
By Bill Barnett of c9hotelworks.com The biggest worldwide tourism story going is that of the trending closure of the iconic resort island of Boracay in the Philippines. In a bold move President Rodrigo Duterte who termed the island a “cesspool” is banning tourist visits from April 26 through October 25. For an island that last year hosted over 2 million…
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Merging Thailand’s emergency phone numbers to 191
Gen. Chakthip Chaijindra, chief of Thai Police, says they are setting up a new emergency service centre to bring together all the nation’s mergence hotlines into just one. The whole of Thailand will have just a single emergency hotline – 191. The call centre and emergency response system will co-ordinate responses to all distress calls for crimes, emergencies, fires or traffic…
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Customs scraps order requiring Thai travellers to declare valuables
The Thai Customs Department says it will scrap an order that requires Thais leaving the country to declare their personal belongings they take out of the country so that they won’t be taxed when they return. The requirement was heavily criticised when it was announced because the procedure of declaration at the international airports would be complicated and time consuming adding…
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Pattaya’s Belarusian sex coach charged with prostitution
FILE PHOTO Anastasia Vashukevich, (AKA Nastya Rybka) the Belarusian ‘sex expert’ who claims to have insider dirt on Russian attempts to meddle in the US election, has been charged with prostitution. Last month she went public asking the US to help her out from her predicament, detained in a Thai prison in Bangkok, in exchanged for information on alleged ties between…
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41 year old Singaporean arrested following Scoot bomb hoax
PHOTO: Kevin Lim A 41 year old man has been arrested for making a false bomb threat on board a Scoot flight from Singapore to Hat Yai, Songkhla, which resulted in the plane returning to Changi Airport. Flight TR634, which left Changi Airport at 1.20pm on Thursday (April 5), was escorted back by two Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF)…
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