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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The holiday season is here, bringing warmth, joy, and a chance to reflect on the year gone by. As an expat in Thailand, this Christmas is a great time to invest in something that truly matters: health. Whether for you...
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Italian couple return home to find Phuket rental house on fire
PHUKET: A short circuit started a fire in the Cherng Talay rental house of an Italian couple yesterday, damaging their bedroom. Antonino Raneri, 54, and his wife Claudia Crescini Laffranchini, 56, were out when the blaze started on Soi Bangtao 11. “At about 5pm my wife and I came home and saw smoke coming from the house,” said Mr Raneri.…
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Phuket python magnet catches third snake seeking shelter
PHUKET: An unlucky resident in northern Phuket suffered deja vu early this morning as he discovered that a two-meter-long python had taken cover from the rain in his chicken coop. At about 1:30am, Chokdee Inklub heard his chickens crying loudly so he went out to investigate. “I found a snake in the coop,” said Mr Chokdee. Rescue workers from the…
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Libyan air controllers strike to protest airport shelling
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Libyan air controllers strike to protest airport shelling Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Air controllers in western Libya have gone on strike to protest the shelling of Tripoli’s main airport, halting flights in much of the oil-producing country, a government official said on Thursday. The strike puts pressure…
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Shelling kills four boys on Gaza beach; Israel, Hamas set five-hour truce
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Shelling kills four boys on Gaza beach; Israel, Hamas set five-hour truce Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Israeli shelling killed four Palestinian boys on a Gaza beach on Wednesday, an incident the military called tragic, and Israel and Hamas said they would cease attacks for five…
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Kata-Karon mayor denies five more charges in connection to Phuket taxi mafia
PHUKET: Police have slapped five more charges on Tawee Thongcham, mayor of Phuket’s tourist-popular beach area Kata-Karon, for his alleged connection to the powerful taxi mafia in the area. Mr Tawee has denied all charges. “Mr Tawee has been charged with the same thing as before, which is conspiracy and the aiding of illegal activities carried out by criminal associations,”…
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Retirement is all about safety first
PHUKET: I cannot even begin to tell you the horror stories I hear from many expats I meet. Unfortunately, they’re coming to see me too late or have not been reading my columns. The first thing that many Americans or Europeans think when they move to Thailand is how cheap it is to live here. We got a lot more…
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Amari appoints new AGM based in Patong
PHUKET: ONYX Hospitality Group, which operates the well-known Amari hotel brand, has announced a restructure of its key hotel and corporate operations roles in Thailand. As part of the restructure, ONYX has promoted their talented hospitality professionals Pierre-Andre Pelletier and David Cumming to the positions of Vice President Area General Manager for Southern Thailand and Bangkok, respectively. Both veterans in…
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Islands off Phuket’s east coast next up in beach cleanup
PHUKET: The islands of Koh Naka Yai and Koh Naka Noi are the next targets in the great Phuket beach cleanup, which has now spread to sands on and off the island’s east coast. Officials planned to visit the islands this afternoon but were informed by a local official that residents there had started clearing illegal beach structures on their…
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Phuket shop owners helpful in clearing Phuket east coast beachfront
PHUKET: The clearing of Phuket’s beaches reached the east coast today as officers helped Ao Por locals dismantle shacks, sun shades and stalls set up along the beachfront. “We had about 70 people on our task force including Navy personnel and staffers from the Pa Khlok Municipality, as well as officers from the Thalang Police Station and Marine Office,” said…
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Taxi finder site seeks to improve user experience
PHUKET: In the midst of the flurry of fanfare regarding the NCPO’s crackdown on Phuket’s illegal taxis and taxi mafia (story here), a small family business called Travelsnooper Co Ltd has created a website that they hope will help all. The new website, called taxithailand.info and available in English and Thai, is aiming for a target audience that includes hotels,…
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Bondi Bar Bashers impress with victory over Village
PHUKET: In the second round of the Outrigger T20 competition, the Village played Bondi Beach Bashers in what promised to be an exciting game with The Village welcoming back a few of their previous stars. The Village won the toss and elected to bat, however, they got off to a shaky start, losing both their opening batsmen in the first…
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Police reforms cause a stir
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police reforms cause a stir The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: National police reforms introduced by the National Council for Peace and Order have already started creating ripples spreading far and wide, and also in the political arena. Though several senior police officers and academics have…
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Death toll from West Africa Ebola outbreak jumps to 603
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Death toll from West Africa Ebola outbreak jumps to 603 – WHO Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The death toll from an Ebola outbreak in West Africa has spiked to 603 since February, with at least 68 deaths reported in the last week alone, the World…
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Parents of children killed in city grenade attack forgive suspects
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Parents of children killed in city grenade attack forgive suspects The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The parents of two children killed in the M79 grenade attack on an anti-government rally in Bangkok’s Ratchadamri area in February said yesterday that they forgave the four suspects prostrating…
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BRICS set up bank to counter Western hold on global finances
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community BRICS set up bank to counter Western hold on global finances Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Leaders of the BRICS emerging market nations launched a $100-billion (58.32 billion pounds) development bank and a currency reserve pool on Tuesday in their first concrete step towards reshaping the…
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Israel targets top Hamas leader as cease-fire collapses
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Israel targets top Hamas leader as cease-fire collapses Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Israel resumed its air strikes in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday a day after holding its fire in deference to an Egyptian-proposed cease-fire deal that failed to get Hamas militants to halt rocket…
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A Phuket success story: British siblings’ locate saviors nearly a decade after the tsunami
PHUKET: A Facebook hunt led by British siblings for a man and woman who helped them during the devastating 2004 tsunami is over; their guardians have been found. Upin Sengmuang, a small shop owner on Tri Trang Beach, learned today that she and her partner Pitchat were being sought by Emily and Ben Willgrass, who had posted a message on…
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Sirinath National Park land tug-of-war continues as chief files complaint against illegal landowners
PHUKET: The Sirinath National Park chief is set to file a complaint against three people who are attempting to upgrade allegedly illegally issued SorKor 1 documents into land title deeds. “Tomorrow morning I will file a complaint to Tah Chat Chai Police against Nakorn Wongsrithong, Chan Pongpa and Anoma Fangsen for encroaching on national park land,” said Sirinath National Park…
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Phuket lawyers push mediation as alternative to court
PHUKET: Lawyers and Phuket officials promoting mediation as an alternative to civil lawsuits held their annual informational event today to raise awareness of the option. “The purpose of our event, Mediation 2014, is to encourage people involved in civil lawsuits to settle their cases outside of court. It tends to be a much swifter process and is offered free of…
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Twelve killed, 120 hurt in Moscow subway accident
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Twelve killed, 120 hurt in Moscow subway accident Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Twelve people were killed on Tuesday and up to 120 injured when a Moscow underground train derailed between two stations during the morning rush hour, the Emergencies Ministry said. Russia’s investigative committee said…
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It’s raining snakes: enormous Phuket python seeks shelter
PHUKET: A four-meter-long python gave an unsuspecting Phuket Town resident a fright this morning. “I was cleaning and had just started on the back room of my house when I saw a big snake lying on the floor,” said 67-year-old homeowner Boonsaner Kullavanit. The startled Ms Boonsaner immediately called Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers, who arrived at the house on Surin…
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Video goes viral of Phuket beach club emptying trash bags in sand
PHUKET: A video posted on YouTube showing Surin beach club staff burying the contents of black garbage bags in the sand is not a matter of concern, says Cherng Talay Mayor Ma-ann Samran. “I saw the video a long time ago and had my staff check it out,” Mayor Ma-ann told the Phuket Gazette today. In the video, taken a…
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Phuket mayor seeks B60mn for seawall to stave off coastal erosion
PHUKET: The Cherng Talay mayor will ask the nation’s military leaders for 60 million baht to build a seawall to prevent coastal erosion at Phuket’s Surin Beach. “We are collecting documents to accompany the budget request, such as plans for the seawall and evidence showing how much damage is done each year by coastal erosion,” Mayor Ma-ann Samran told the…
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Navy tears down Phuket beach restaurants at Nai Yang
PHUKET: About 100 Navy personnel and national park officers are this morning continuing their “mop up” operation after tearing down 11 restaurants and bars at Phuket’s Nai Yang Beach yesterday. “We notified these vendors that they were encroaching on national park land and ordered them many times to remove their buildings, but they ignored us,” Sirinath National Park Chief Kitiphat…
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Train rape suspect to appear in court tomorrow
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Train rape suspect to appear in court tomorrow The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Prachuap Khiri Khan police confirmed yesterday that the rape and murder case of a 13-year-old girl on a Nakhon Si Thammarat-Bangkok train would be handed over to the public prosecutor tomorrow. Provincial…
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Tourist’s body found in Chiang Mai lake
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Tourist’s body found in Chiang Mai lake The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The body of a South Korean tourist was found in a large man-made lake in Chiang Mai’s Hang Dong district yesterday. Police believe Song Tae Khy, 22, drowned while swimming with his friends…
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Egypt launches initiative to halt Israel-Palestinian conflict
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Egypt launches initiative to halt Israel-Palestinian conflict Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Egypt launched an initiative on Monday to halt fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants, proposing a ceasefire to be followed by talks in Cairo on settling the conflict in which Gaza authorities say more…
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Crackdown on tourist visas sees dozens turned away per month at Phuket’s main portal to Malaysia
PHUKET: Tourists unable to prove the legitimacy of their trip to Thailand are being turned away despite having tourist visas issued by Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed Lt Col Banphot Kittivira, deputy superintendent of the Immigration checkpoint at Sadao. The Sadao checkpoint, the portal for Phuket visa runners bound for Malaysia, sees about 100 foreigners denied entry into the…
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No flash flood warning for Phuket – yet
PHUKET: Despite heavy rains throughout Phuket today, the local office of the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) has confirmed that no warning has been issued for flash floods or landslides on the island. “We haven’t been told to issue local warnings,” Santhad Panbanpeaw, director of the Phuket TMD office, told the Phuket Gazette. “The current wet weather is the same as…
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Accor steps into high-end ring with Grand Mercure Patong Phuket
THE ACCOR Group’s latest high-end hotel in the province is aiming to quickly ween itself off the source of its current success, TripAdvisor, and use agent-sourced revenue streams to hit its 2014 goal of gross revenue exceeding 160 million baht. “Phuket is an agent-based destination. It’s the bread and butter of the business. It would be too risky to rely…
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