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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Smooth travel to Belgium and the Netherlands: Visa tips & tricks!
Make Belgium and the Netherlands your next destination with the right visa in hand. Explore the iconic tulip fields, cruise through Amsterdam’s scenic canals, or stroll through the historic streets of Bruges. Don’t forget to enjoy some authentic Belgian chocolate...
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Phuket Gazette World News: Syrians are main asylum seekers in rich world – U.N.
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Syrians are main asylum seekers in rich world – U.N. Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: For the first time, Syrians were the biggest group seeking asylum in industrialised countries last year, as the impact of fighting in the country spread beyond the turbulent region, the United…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Popcorn gunman confesses; Senate Speaker indicted; Toxic inferno clues go up in smoke
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PDRC guard Popcorn Gunman confesses The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The so-called “popcorn gunman” yesterday confessed that he worked as a People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) guard and was one of the gunmen involved in the Lak Si shooting incident a day before the February…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Australia resumes ocean search for Flight MH370 black boxes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Australia resumes ocean search for Flight MH370 black boxes Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: If two blurred objects photographed from space are confirmed as debris from Flight MH370, scientists will still face a daunting task to find and recover the sensitive recorders containing clues to the…
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Ousted Pian back in the Phuket race for Patong mayor
PHUKET: Former Patong Mayor Pian Keesin, recently found guilty of vote fraud, is back on the battlefield for the chance to reclaim his position as leader of Phuket’s premier party town. Registration opened yesterday for Patong Mayor potentials and municipality council members amid a crowd of supporters. So far, Mr Pian has only one opponent, former Phuket MP Chalermluck Kebsab.…
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Phuket officials lay into landslide concerns caused by Big Buddha construction
PHUKET: Landslide risks and water management concerns caused by the construction of Phuket’s Big Buddha image were on the table yesterday as officials met for the first time since work at the site slammed to a halt last month. Construction at the popular tourist attraction was put on hold after villagers filed a complaint and prompted an inspection of the…
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Phuket Cycling: The power of Yao Yai island
PHUKET: New Age guru Eckhart Tolle sold millions of copies of his book The Power of Now which expounded the blindingly obvious premise that we would all be much happier if we lived our lives in the here and now. Tolle tells us over 256 repetitive pages, that rather than worrying about what might happen tomorrow, or regretting our misdeeds…
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Protected Phuket hillside slashed and burned
PHUKET: Four rai of forest on a hillside in Kamala was obliterated on Tuesday night to make room for a rubber plantation. “The area has been ruined – all the trees were cut down and burned,” said Phuket Natural Resources and Environment Office Chief Kasem Sukwaree this morning. “Terracing had already been put up in preparation for establishing a rubber…
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Phuket Police set to launch nationwide manhunt for Patong headhunter killers
PHUKET: Patong Police are preparing to send an alert to every police station in the country in the hopes of apprehending three prime suspects for the murder of Myanmar worker Wai Phyo Kyaw, 22, whose decapitated body was found dumped on Patong Hill on March 9 (story here). “We have learned the names of three of the five men we…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Russian forces seize two Ukrainian bases in Crimea
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Russian forces seize two Ukrainian bases in Crimea Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The United States warned Moscow it was on a “dark path” to isolation on Wednesday as Russian troops seized two Ukrainian naval bases, including a headquarters in the Crimean port of Sevastopol where…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Bangkok bunkers stay; Yingluck faces NACC probe; Ya bah-heroin drug raises fears; Toxic fire nearly out
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Military to maintain bunkers despite lifting of emergency The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The military will maintain its force and 176 street bunkers across Bangkok, even though the government has lifted the emergency decree.A military source said the reason the government scrapped the state of…
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Video Report: Canal works to boost Phuket marina access
Gulu Lalvani dubbed provincial governor Maitri Inthusut an “action man” while describing his delight that – after ten years of delays – work has finally begun on dredging the channel that leads to Royal Phuket Marina and the Boat Lagoon. Video: PGTV PHUKET: The 12-million-baht project to dredge the Koh Kaew Canal and deepen the existing approach channel from Phang…
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Phuket Police seek arrest warrants for suspects in alleged kidnapping of Russians
PHUKET: Phuket Police are seeking arrest warrants for the two prime suspects involved in the alleged kidnapping of a Russian couple. The woman, Iana Strizheus, 22, was badly injured and in shock when she was found by a maid at the Blue Garden Resort and Spa at about 6pm on Sunday. She and her boyfriend, Alexey Slabinskiy, 39, were reported…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Area of Malaysia plane search now size of Australia
PHUKET: An international land and sea search for a missing Malaysian jetliner is covering an area the size of Australia, authorities said on Tuesday, but police and intelligence agencies have yet to establish a clear motive to explain its disappearance. Investigators are convinced that someone with deep knowledge of the Boeing 777-200ER and commercial navigation diverted Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370,…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: State of Emergency lifted; Peace talks rejected; Thai radar may have spotted MH370; Toxic smog alert
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community State of emergency scrapped The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Cabinet yesterday lifted the emergency decree in Bangkok and nearby areas and replaced it with the Internal Security Act, effective today. Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said later that the move was aimed at boosting…
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Formal charges against Phuket protest leaders delayed
PHUKET: Police delayed pressing formal charges today against five Phuket protest leaders for obstructing the February 2 national election and obstructing law enforcement officers. The five – Suratin Lian-udom, Sompop Konkeaw, Chartchai Chuachit, Saman Krohlek and Sanya Srimuang– were scheduled to appear at Thalang Police Station at 10am to witness the handing over of the case files to the Phuket…
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Tourism Minister targets Phuket’s stolen passport trade
PHUKET: Recent news of the stolen passports trade in Phuket and the recently found Russian kidnap victim prompted a visit from Thailand’s Tourism and Sports Minister to the island yesterday to meet with officials and get to the bottom of the issues. “I came to Phuket to follow up on the cases concerning the stolen passports used to board missing…
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Phuket Sports: Lee hits winning trail
PHUKET: Canada’s Richard T Lee learned a thing or two about the rewards of hard work and even a stroke of lady luck when he won his maiden title at the casino-backed Solaire Open last weekend. On Sunday, all these winning combinations propelled him towards the finish line and earned the 23-year-old his career breakthrough on the Asian Tour at…
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Phuket Business: Seminar on economic and investment trends in Phuket this Thursday
PHUKET: Siam Commercial Bank will be hosting a seminar in Phuket titled “Economic and Investment Trends in Phuket’s Thriving Tourism Industry” this Thursday, March 20 at 1:30pm at the Royal Phuket City Hotel. With industry and investment insight from leading speakers in their fields, the free seminar will be in two languages – Thai and English – and is targeting…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Crimea joins Russia; US, EU impose sanctions
PHUKET: The United States and European Union imposed personal sanctions on Monday on Russian and Crimean officials involved in the seizure of Crimea from Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognising the region as a sovereign state. The moves heightened the most serious East-West crisis since the end of the Cold War, following a disputed referendum in…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Time bombs near Criminal Court; World Cup broadcast free; Thai AirAsia restarts tourism
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Two time bombs found near Criminal Court The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Two home-made bombs were discovered on Ratchadaphisek Road in two separate locations yesterday morning. The first one was found at around 7am by a Bangkok Metropolitan Administration street cleaner in a bus stop…
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Phuket Business: Phuket’s plans to trap MICE travellers
PHUKET: A recent conference organized by the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) examined the role of Meeting, Incentives, Conferences and Events (MICE) travellers in Phuket’s diversifying tourism industry. The event, which was co-hosted by AMCHAM, the British Chamber of Commerce Thailand (BCCT) and the Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce (AustCham), featured three experts on Thailand’s rapidly growing MICE tourism industry. The…
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Phuket Drive Thru: Woman blames car for surging into 7-Eleven
PHUKET: A woman parking her car outside a 7-Eleven in Phuket Town this afternoon ended up inside the store when the vehicle suddenly surged forward, injuring a 12-year-old girl in the process. Orathai Kaikong, 31, had pulled into a gas station on Phun Pol Road in Phuket Town with her boyfriend to buy snacks. “I was braking while pulling into…
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Patong elections set for April 26, bringing another weekend alcohol ban
PHUKET: The Patong by-election has been set for Saturday, April 26. After former Patong Mayor Pian Keesin was found guilty of electoral fraud on March 7 (story here), new elections were required by law to take place within 60 days, explained Patong Municipality Chief Administrative Officer Poonsuk Narksena. Candidate registrations will be accepted on the third floor at Patong Municipality…
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Phuket’s B120mn road to Freedom Beach inches forward
PHUKET: The controversial new road planned to provide access to Freedom Beach, south of Patong, took a step closer to becoming reality as the project passed its third and final public hearing on Friday. About 80 of the 100 participants who joined the hearing, held at the Patong Merlin Hotel, voted to approve the project, rebounding from a 64 per…
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Blackout strikes third of island as Phuket sees year’s first rain
PHUKET: A blown transformer was responsible for a two-hour blackout in parts of Phuket on Saturday afternoon, said an official at the Phuket Provincial Electrical Authority (PPEA). Electricity shut off in Chalong, Rawai, Kathu, Patong, Kathu and some areas of Phuket Town at about 3pm. “After we got calls from the public, we sent a repair crew out. Within two…
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Police post bodyguard for Russian ‘kidnap’ victim
PHUKET: Police have posted an around-the-clock guard outside the hospital room of the Russian woman who was found injured yesterday after having disappeared for nine days. Friends say the woman, Iana Strizheus, 22, may have been the victim of a kidnapping. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Ong-art Phiwruangnont visited Ms Strizheus at Bangkok Hospital Phuket last night. “We don’t know how…
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Phuket Sports: Phuket FC and TTM Customs draw at Surakul Stadium
PHUKET: With a full moon overhead and a smoke filled sky, the scene yesterday evening in Phuket Town seemed more appropriate for a zombie apocalypse than a football match. The living dead did not make it out to the game, however, 5,100 fans did, and cheered on their home team Phuket FC as they lined up against TTM Customs. Coming…
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Phuket Gazette World News: ‘Good night’ – Haunting final contact from missing Malaysian jet
PHUKET: The last words from the cockpit of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 – “all right, good night” – were uttered after someone on board had already begun disabling one of the plane’s automatic tracking systems, a senior Malaysian official said. Both the timing and informal nature of the phrase, spoken to air traffic controllers as the plane with 239…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Crimeans vote over 90 percent to quit Ukraine for Russia
PHUKET: Russian state media said Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to break with Ukraine and join Russia on Sunday, as Kiev accused Moscow of pouring forces into the peninsula and warned separatist leaders “the ground will burn under their feet”. With over half the votes counted, 95.5 percent had chosen the option of annexation by Moscow, the head of the referendum commission,…
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Mysterious deaths of Quebec sisters may be due to lethal dose of pesticide
PHUKET: Two Canadian sisters who died mysteriously on the popular resort island of Phi Phi in 2012 may have ingested toxic amounts of a lethal pesticide called aluminum phosphide, reports Canadian news network CBC. The highly toxic pesticide is used to control bedbugs in some holiday hotels in Asia and may have contributed to the deaths of Audrey and Noemi…
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