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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Sponsored Where to travel in Thailand in April [2025]
Travelling in Thailand is peak during April if you are looking for a real taste of summer. With high temperatures, amazing beaches, and exciting events, April is an amazing time to visit the country as a whole. Due to the...
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Selfridges’ Thai owners take on 70 billion baht debt
Central Group, Selfridges’ Thai owners along with Austrian enterprise Signa Holdings, have taken on another £1.7 billion (US$ 2 billion, 70 billion baht) of debt in a strategy to increase investment returns. The London branch of Bangkok Bank provided the loan, secured against the lease on the retailer’s London flagship store. Selfridges said the loan would “release capital” for the…
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Over 7,000 Russians in Phuket apply for visa extensions
Over 7,000 Russians in Phuket are applying for visa extensions in a bid to stay in Thailand. Local immigration chief, Thanet Sukchai, says the great weather is one factor in their attempts to stay. “Phuket is a nice place to visit with delicious food and good weather. As word has spread about the island, Russian tourists keep coming to the…
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Taiwanese tourist tragically drowns while snorkeling off Krabi
A Taiwanese tourist tragically drowned while snorkelling off an island in Thailand’s Krabi province. The tourist, 36 year old Yueh Lee, had been snorkelling off the island of Koh Hong on Tuesday, according to his friend. The unidentified friend said they had been looking at coral reefs. Lifeguards then noticed that Yueh had been lying face down in the water…
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UK YouTuber’s video on Thai boy racers praised by netizens
Thai netizens hailed UK YouTuber JimmyTheGiant for his documentary-style video “Thailand’s Most Hated Subculture,” which sheds light on the persistent issue of boy racers in the kingdom. Many have called on Thai authorities to take the issue seriously and sort it out. The term “Dek Waen” is used to describe teenage boy racers who ride motorcycles or drive cars, very fast. However,…
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Thailand extends emergency decree in Deep South
Thailand is extending the emergency decree in the Deep South for another three months. The decree applies to the border provinces of Yala, Pattani, and Narathiwat and will run from March 20 to June 19. According to the Bangkok Post, the newest extension of the decree marks the 71st time it has been issued. The Deputy Prime Minister, Prawit Wongsuwon…
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Expensive flights to Thailand too hot for Chinese mainland mainstream
Expensive flights to Thailand from bigger cities in China are delaying Thailand’s tourism recovery. Most tariffs are still one and a half times more than pre-pandemic prices, while for smaller cities, fares are more than double previous levels According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor Yuthasak Supasorn, while most tickets are cheaper than last year, prices for March…
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American soldier dies at Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand
An American soldier attending the annual Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand was found dead in the bathroom at an army camp in Lop Buri province, north of Bangkok, yesterday at 9.40am. Officers from Mueang Lop Buri Police Station travelled to the 31st Infantry Regiment to find the soldier deceased in the bathroom in a pool of blood. There was…
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Japan’s births hit a new low last year
Japan’s population crisis has deepened as the number of births recorded in the country hit a new low last year, despite efforts by the government to reverse the decades-long decline. Statistics released by the Ministry of Health yesterday show that the country saw 799,728 births in 2022. This was the lowest number on record, and the first time it has…
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Chinese businessman allegedly behind 10 million baht worth of fake auto parts in Thailand
A Chinese businessman allegedly ran a warehouse with counterfeit auto parts in Thailand. Yesterday, police and officials seized about 200,000 counterfeit auto parts worth around 10 million baht in Thailand’s central Nakhon Pathom province. Local police, economic crime suppression police, and other officials raided a warehouse in the Nakhon Chaisi district. The team arrested the building’s caretaker, 24 year old…
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50 elephants ‘addicted to sugarcane’ destroy 2000 rai of crops in Thailand
A herd of around 50 wild elephants has migrated into farmland in Loei province in northeast Thailand, destroying 2000 rai of crops so far. There is no sign of them retreating into the forest. Recently, around 50 elephants migrated into agricultural land in the Phra Kradueng district from the Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary. No wonder the elephants moved away from…
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4 police officers and 3 men arrested for smuggling motorcycles
Authorities arrested four police officers, one Thai man, and two Cambodian men yesterday at a pier in the southeastern province of Trat for smuggling six motorcycles into a neighbouring country. The Marine Special Unit 182 received a tip-off from an authority spy that the smuggling was to take place at a pier in the Mai Root sub-district, Khlong Yai district…
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2 men arrested for animal trafficking, over 100 carcasses seized
Two men were arrested yesterday in the central province of Suphan Buri for trafficking protected animals. The authorities seized over 100 carcasses of monitor lizards and turtles, making the largest number on record. Authorities from the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Division, or Greencop, and U-Thong Police Station were notified that a house owner, later identified as 73 year old…
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Tel Aviv – Bangkok flight time reduced by 2.5 hours
Flights between Tel Aviv and Bangkok, Thailand, just got three hours shorter thanks to the government of Oman who made the long-awaited decision to open its airspace to aircraft from all countries, including Israel. On Sunday, an EL AL Israel Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Bangkok flew through Oman’s airspace, becoming the first Israeli airline to do so, three…
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Venus and Jupiter to be visible in Thai skies for the next few nights
Stargazers will be happy to hear that Venus and Jupiter will be visible in Thai skies for the next few nights, according to the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT). NARIT said the two planets will almost touch each other in the night sky on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, Nation Thailand reported. The institute said Venus and Jupiter will…
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Faith-based businesses: Your good luck is their bad luck
There’s big money in misery. In times of economic downturn and instability, many Thais turn to spiritual practices such as prayer, amulets, and fortune telling for support. As a result, many faith-based businesses have emerged to offer solutions to people’s problems. But as the economy grows stronger and more stable, faith business profits are falling. With the onset of the…
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Police say key suspect in macau888 case fled Thailand last month
Police say that a key suspect in the Macau888 gambling network case fled Thailand last month, along with his girlfriend. The suspect, 32 year old Kittipong ‘Big’ Kajornboonthavorn, is the younger brother of alleged macau888 gambling kingpin ‘Benz Daeman.’ Benz was finally arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport upon his return to Thailand on February 14. According to the head of the Cybercrime…
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Man arrested 19 times for thefts in Pattaya
Maybe the 19th time is the charm? A man was arrested in Pattaya for stealing a Russian woman’s phone, and, as it turns out, he had previously been arrested for theft 19 times before. The 54 year old Thai man was arrested this time after he was caught stealing a phone from a Russian woman. She reported to the police that…
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Fisherman claims Pattaya beach fire was an act of arson
A fisherman claims that a recent fire on a lesser-known Pattaya beach was a deliberate act of arson. The beach, located on Soi Naklua 18, is mostly used by fishermen who store their fishing gear, tables, and chairs. They later sell their catches in the nearby area. The blaze occurred between 3am to 4am on Monday, burning some of the…
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Grab driver caught on tracking app stealing passenger’s phone
A group of friends turned detective to successfully track down a lost mobile phone using a tracking application after it had been stolen by their Grab driver. They cancelled pre-booked flights and a vacation trip worth over 10,000 baht and set out to track down the thief. The incident was captured on video by one of the victim’s friends, 26…
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Tourist films himself smoking blunt while riding elephant in Thailand
A tourist in Thailand has filmed his experience riding an elephant while smoking a blunt and posted it on Instagram. According to Leafly, Mikhail Harrison rolled up some GUMBO and went into the jungle for an exotic experience. He posed the question, “If you could smoke weed with an elephant, which strain would you pick?” on his Instagram page. In…
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Thai ambassador to UK attends football captain ‘Dom’s’ funeral
Thailand’s ambassador to the UK joined the funeral service for Duangphet Phromthep, or “Dom,” who was captain of the Thai football team that was rescued from a cave. The Royal Thai Embassy said Ambassador Thani Thongphakdi attended yesterday’s funeral along with students and teachers from Dom’s school, the CEO of Leicester City Football Club and others. The embassy says Buddhist…
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British labradors head to Thailand to sniff out smuggled pangolins
Two sharp-nosed Labradors from England are heading to Thailand to save critically-endangered pangolins from wildlife smugglers. The elusive, nocturnal pangolin – able to roll up into an armour-plated ball when threatened – is the most trafficked animal in the world. Known as “scaly anteaters,” these unique mammals disguised as reptiles are trafficked primarily for their scales, which are used in…
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Drunk lawyer tries to flee after causing 9 vehicle crash
A drunken lawyer attempted to flee the scene of a crime in his damaged car after he crashed his Isuzu MU-7 SUV into nine cars on the road in the Isaan province of Udon Thani. The blood alcohol content in the alleged drunk registered at a staggering 219 milligrammes. This is significantly higher than the legal limit of 50 milligrammes, indicating…
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Thailand’s Cobra Gold war games sees largest US attendance in decade
Thailand’s annual Cobra Gold war games have seen the largest attendance by the US in a decade. The international military exercise started yesterday and runs to March 10. The unprecedented attendance by the US military is thought to be part of Washington’s efforts to build ties with a key security partner as geopolitical competition with China is on the rise.…
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Pattaya Police arrest 14 street beggars including nine kids
Pattaya Police are cracking down on street beggars by arresting 14 just last night. The arrests come after many complaints from tourists and residents. The arrests were of migrant workers, nine of whom were aged two to six years old. Patikorn Sornchai, deputy commander of Chon Buri Provincial Police, led the operation while Social Development and Human Security Officers combed…
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Traffic cop delivers 100 babies on the streets of Bangkok
Sporting big bikes, brown outfits and guns on their hips, Thai traffic police officers don’t look like your average midwives. But in gridlocked Bangkok, pregnant women don’t always make it to the hospital in time. In a sprawling city home to nearly 11 million people, sometimes the only way to reach those in need of medical help is on two…
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Cowardly British man on run in Thailand after abusing ex-girlfriend
A cowardly British man is on the run and believed to be in Thailand after administering the “most despicable psychological, emotional, and physical abuse,” on a former girlfriend. Nicholas Cash was found guilty of several charges, including controlling or coercive behaviour, assault causing bodily harm, criminal damage, and administering a poisonous or noxious substance with intent. These convictions followed a…
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Chang focuses on the mass-premium beer market
Chang beer’s parent company, Chang International Co., is eyeing the mass-premium beer market to expand its catalogue and profits. The company announced plans to invest 1 billion baht to grow its beer business and strengthen its portfolio with Chang Cold Brew. With the pandemic easing, the economy coming back, and tourism blooming, people are spending more on booze. Chang is…
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Man robbed at gunpoint by prostitute’s husband in Isaan
A man highlighted the dangers of booking a prostitute after he was robbed at gunpoint by the sex worker’s husband in the Isaan province of Khon Kaen. The criminal couple was arrested on Monday, which also led to the arrest of ten other prostitutes, but because the victim did not file a complaint with the police the couple got off…
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Patong Police swoop on street racers
Patong Police swooped on street racers on Monday night, following the area’s numerous problems with foreign motorbike racers. Officers were stationed across Patong after 10pm. Meanwhile, Patong Traffic Police set up a checkpoint at the bottom of Patong Hill. Patong Police did not specify how many people were caught dangerously speeding, The Phuket News reported. Last week, the Thai government…
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