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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Mercedes-Benz driver runs over man on busy Phuket road
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of an unidentified man who was hit and killed instantly last night by a Mercedes-Benz as he was crossing Phuket’s busy Thepkrasattri Road.By the time police arrived at the scene, near the Srisoonthorn Municipality offices, the driver of the Mercedes-Benz sedan, Virat Aumarat, 56, was already en route to Thalang Police Station.“Mr Virat asked…
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Phuket surf leaves Russian tourist in coma
PHUKET: A Russian tourist in Phuket lies comatose in intensive care today after being pulled from the dangerous surf at Karon Beach yesterday afternoon. The tourist, named by Patong Hospital as Kho Khay Gym, 31, was pulled from the water by beach vendors at about 4:30pm. “He was rushed to Patong Hospital, and later transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital in…
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Phuket temple visit postponed after car bursts into flames
PHUKET: Two women on their way to Phuket’s famous Chalong Temple escaped from their car on Chao Fa East Road shortly before it burst into flames.Police responded to a 5:30pm call to find 31-year-old Kesara Thongnop, the driver of the car, and a friend siting in shock by the side of the road next to a burned out white Toyota…
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Giorgi heads Phuket FC back to fifth
PHUKET: It was an exciting weekend for the Thai Sports world, especially for Thailand’s professional and semi-professional football leagues. Phuket FC seized back their 5th place ranking in the 18-team Yamaha League One (division 1) with a much needed 0-1 win on the road to Rayong United on Saturday evening. The match’s only allowed goal was scored by Georgian import…
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3 drownings in 3 days prompts Phuket plea to obey red flags
PHUKET: Following three tourists drowning at Phuket beaches within three days, the island’s authorities have issued a public plea for everyone to heed red warning flags, marking that the surf is too dangerous to swim. The plea follows the drowning death of Indian tourist Ramesh Chand Singhal, 49, at Kata Beach (map here) on Saturday. Mr Singhal, on holiday with…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Malaysia declares haze state of emergency
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Malaysia declares emergency as Indonesian smoke pollution thickens Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Malaysia declared a state of emergency in two parts of the southern state of Johor on Sunday as smoke from land-clearing fires in Indonesia pushed air pollution above the level considered hazardous.The illegal burning of…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Snowden in Moscow, seeks asylum in Ecuador; Mandela health critical; Bus plunges off Montenegro bridge; Saudis change working week
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Snowden lands in Moscow, seeks asylum in Ecuador Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Fugitive former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden is seeking asylum in Ecuador, the Quito government said on Sunday, after Hong Kong let him leave for Russia despite Washington’s efforts to extradite him on espionage…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: White masks to march on CentralWorld; Sadao supercar smuggler’s highway; Call for businesses to help educate
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community White masks adamant about rallying at CentralWorld despite ban The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The white-masks are adamant about rallying at CentralWorld today as part of their weekly anti-government protest, although the department store yesterday banned protesters from using its premises for political rallies.CentralWorld announced that it…
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Phuket Opinion: Life-saving skills, English to the rescue
Juan Burana, 37, came from Surin to work in Phuket in 1995. He has been a Kusoldharm Foundation volunteer since 2003 and has worked as a rescue worker in Patong for the past four years.Here, he talks about what tourists can do to stay safe and what Kusoldharm can do to improve the skills of their staff and help save…
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Multi-million baht Sea Gypsy center defunct before doors open
PHUKET: The long-awaited Sea Gypsy Cultural Center, slated to open at the end of 2012 at a budget that ballooned from 2 million to 5.4 million baht, has deteriorated into a derelict shell of a building that has become a shelter for the homeless. The promised library, exhibition spaces and native handiwork demonstrations highlighting the millennia-old culture of the Urak…
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Phuket Opinion: Culture of neglect holds steady path
PHUKET: Failure of local authorities to complete the multi-million baht “Sea Gypsy Cultural Center” on Koh Sireh in Rassada is just the latest in a long string of long-delayed projects on the island that highlights the inefficient use of taxpayer money and failings of bureaucracy – all at the teetering altar of “tourism promotion”. Millions of baht in funding for…
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Phuket cat burglar nabbed after Hat Yai holiday
PHUKET: The ex-con responsible for a string of robberies at Rock Garden Estate was arrested by police yesterday, after several days of high-living in Hat Yai with the proceeds from the fenced goods.“Weerapat Pikulthong, 36, robbed six houses in Rock Garden Estate after he was released from prison. He sold the stolen goods in Hat Yai,” said Phuket City Police…
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PPHO issues warning over Phuket rainy season Dengue Fever deaths
PHUKET: With three recent deaths from Dengue Fever in Phuket and 59 deaths nationwide this year, the Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) yesterday held an emergency meeting to renew their efforts to stymie the spread of the disease this rainy season. The meeting comes in the wake of Public Health Minister Pradit Sintavanarong urging all hospitals to diagnose their patients…
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Man charged with trafficking Rohingya refugees may face rape charges
PHUKET: One of five Rohingya who escaped the Phang Nga Shelter for Children and Family is waiting for doctors to confirm her claims of being raped, for three consecutive nights, by the human trafficker that had promised to get her and her two daughters safely to Malaysia.The alleged rapist, Koreemura Ramahatu, 26, is only facing human trafficking charges so far,…
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Young sailors get own Raceweek
PHUKET: Talented young sailors are getting anxious to show their seniors how sailing is done, with an inaugural Junior Phuket Raceweek to be held on the day before the 10th anniversary of the island’s premier Phuket Raceweek regatta concludes. Organized by Media Business Services (MBS) and co-hosted by Regent Phuket Cape Panwa and Panwa Beach Resort Phuket, the one-day youth…
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Wrestling action at Saphan Hin
PHUKET: The 2013 Asian Junior Wrestling Championship was held at Saphan Hin’s 4,000-seat Indoor Sports Complex last weekend. Nearly 400 wrestlers from 20 countries competed at Free Style, Greco Roman and Female wrestling. The event was open to 17 to 18-year-old wrestlers, but participants under the age of 17 could compete if organizers received written permission from their parents. Thailand…
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World rugby round up – Wounded Lions
PHUKET: In sport, truth is often stranger than fiction. If someone had predicted that 36-year-old Shane Williams (who retired from international rugby two years ago), Brad Barritt (on holiday in the US) and both Christian Wade and Billy Twelvetrees (part of the recent tour of Argentina with England) would all be down under and playing in the last and crucial…
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Body of tortured, executed man dumped near Phuket school
PHUKET: Police are trying to establish the motive behind the torturing and execution of a man whose body was found in Koh Kaew, north of Phuket Town, yesterday morning.Col Sien Kaewthong of the Phuket City Police named the victim as Niwat Si-urai, 37.Police believe Mr Niwat was killed eight hours before his body was found by 52-year-old local resident Chalerm…
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VIDEO REPORT: Officials confirm high-flying monk not on Buddhist business
PHUKET: If renowned monk Luang Pu Nenkham is in Phuket, it is not on temple business, the Phuket Gazette confirmed yesterday.Luang Pu Nenkham is wanted for questioning after being filmed on board a private jet while sporting brand-name sunglasses and a Louis Vuitton bag. Chatpawit Jinapong, Director of the Phuket branch of the National Office of Buddhism, told the Gazette…
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Phuket Airport security staffer arrested for stealing $900 from Aussie tourist
PHUKET: Police arrested a baggage security worker at Phuket International Airport on Thursday after the officer was found to have stolen AUS$900 from an Australian tourist’s carry-on bag while it was passing through the x-ray machine.Tah Chat Chai Police arrested Uraiwan Yhobkhaan, 34, from Ranong, at her rented accommodation in Sakoo at about 9:30am.“Australian tourist Andreas Paolo Clappis reported the…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Divorce, domestic abuse on the rise in Thailand
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Divorce, domestic abuse on the rise in Thailand The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The rate of divorce in Thailand has tripled from 10.8 per cent in 2009 to 33 per cent in 2012, while domestic violence has been recorded in at least a third of Thai families.At…
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Phuket Police defend action over Russian gun threat YouTube video
PHUKET: Phuket’s top-ranking police officer Maj Gen Choti Chavalviwat called a press conference yesterday to announce that he has ordered an investigation into the posting of a YouTube video which he says damages the image of Phuket and Thailand The 2.16 minute video (click here) shows a Thai man using a gun to threaten a Russian man, kick him once…
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Russian, Belgian tourists drown at Phuket beaches
PHUKET: Two tourists drowned within half an hour of each other yesterday on the west coast of Phuket. In both cases, red warning flags had been posted on the beaches. Belgian Laurent Jacques Leopold Wanter, 43, was pulled from the surf at Laem Sing Beach, north of Patong at 3:30pm. Despite efforts by lifeguards to resuscitate him, Mr Wanter was…
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Phuket Town loan shop employee shot in holdup
PHUKET: Police are hunting for a man who robbed a motorcycle refinance shop in Phuket Town yesterday morning and shot one of the employees in the leg. “Before the robbery, three of us were checking a customer list,” said Somruedee Sriwichai, 26, who works at the money lenders on Kra Road (map here). “We saw a man park his bike…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: PM to fight NSC reinstatement; Gold hits 3 year low; Supercar duo surrender; Theft named as motive in Akeyuth murder
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PM to fight Thawil’s return as NSC chief The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has decided to appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court against the reinstatement of Thawil Pliensri as secretary-general of the National Security Council.Tongthong Chandransu, PM’s Office permanent secretary, said yesterday that…
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PLTO chief demands Phuket Airport Bus service start rolling July 1
PHUKET: The Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) chief insisted today that the Phuket Airport Bus “hop on, hop off” service needs to be in gear and serving tourists by July 1. “The first airport bus route, which will go to Patong, must be launched by July 1,” PLTO Chief Terayout Prasertphol told the Phuket Gazette today. “The bus owner told…
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Police suspect heroin overdose in Phuket gas station death
PHUKET: An unidentified man died shortly after taking a hit of heroin in a Phuket gas station today. Witnesses saw the man park his motorbike near the men’s toilet and then rush into one of the four stalls. After a short period of time he toppled out of the stall dead, said Sakol Krainara of the Phuket City Police. Police…
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Phuket local set to skipper Sansiri in world’s oldest yacht race
PHUKET: In a world first for Thailand, Sansiri PLC today announced they are supporting Phuket local and member of Ao Chalong Yacht Club Mr Patinyakorn Buranrom to become the first-ever Thai sailor to skipper a yacht in a major international ocean yacht race, the TRANSPAC 2013. Mr Patinyakorn, an accomplished sailor, will compete in the longest of the two oldest…
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Helmetless Phuket motorbike driver dies from head trauma
PHUKET: A helmetless motorbike driver from Phuket Town died last night after losing control of his motorbike and hitting a utility pole in Thalang.Police rushed to the scene to find the body of Kongkait Ngamtong, 26, in a ditch in front of the Muang Thalang School on the northbound side of Thepkrasattri Road, said Thalang Police Officer Narong Muangdoung.“Witnesses said…
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Gone fishing: Man snags Siamese crocodile at Phuket pond
PHUKET: An elevator technician who went night fishing in central Phuket on Tuesday thought he had caught a monitor lizard.But when he got to his house, he discovered he had manhandled a meter-long Siamese crocodile and brought it home on his motorbike.Charee Pattangtanang, 31, went fishing with a friend, Wanchai Hansopa, at their usual spot – a lagoon behind The…
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