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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The 5 most common travel emergencies in Thailand and how to be prepared
Thailand is a popular destination known for its dynamic culture, stunning beaches, and bustling cities however, travellers can face unexpected travel emergencies that include medical issues, road accidents, petty theft, and natural disasters. To ensure a safe and enjoyable trip,...
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Chinese man in Pattaya has finger cut off, allegedly by gang who held him captive
Pattaya Police say that a Chinese man had his finger cut off by a ransom gang who held him captive. The man, 41 year old Ren Haibo, suddenly disappeared at midnight on October 30, according to his Thai girlfriend, 20 year old Alisara Supasiribundit. Alisara said that Ren and his car were both gone. She said Ren’s brother contacted her the…
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VIDEO: Nine arrested in connection with pedestrian bridge tragedy in India
Police in India arrested nine people in connection with the collapse of a pedestrian bridge which killed about 140 people on Sunday. Senior police officer Ashok Kumar Yadav made a statement yesterday announcing the suspects arrested are all associated with Oreva, a Gujarat-based electrical appliances manufacturer that did repairs to the 230-meter-long bridge in the town of Morbi in India’s…
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Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend APEC summit in Bangkok, Thailand
Chinese President Xi Jinping has confirmed his attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok next month, according to Thai government spokesperson Don Pramudwinai. Don told the media today that President Xi had officially confirmed his attendance as a “special guest” at the summit as China is not an APEC member state. Other “special guests” who have confirmed…
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The “world’s dirtiest man” dies in Iran
An Iranian villager dubbed the “world’s dirtiest man,” died last week, several news outlets reported. The man, 94 year old “Amu Haji,” or “Uncle Hajj” was known in his village in the southern Fars province for being a soap dodger. Until a few months ago, Haji hadn’t bathed in 67 years, over half a century. When other villagers took him…
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RTP to introduce QR code on police guns to prevent theft & misconduct
The Royal Thai Police (RTP) plans to introduce a QR code on all police guns so they can track payment and prevent theft and misconduct by officers. The Deputy Commissioner of the RTP, Torsak Sookwimon, revealed to Thairath that Thai police officers do not want to use guns provided by the government because the disbursement process is slow and complicated.…
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Plastic cup found in stomach of dead Bruda whale in Phuket, Thailand
A dead Bruda whale was found floating in Laem Sai Bay to the south of Koh Racha, Phuket province, southern Thailand, on Saturday. Thailand’s Department of Marine and Coastal Resources conducted an autopsy on the 13 metre whale, which raised more questions than answers. On Saturday, the department sent out boats to inspect the carcass of a female Bruda whale.…
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Largest Indian restaurant in Southeast Asia opens in Pattaya
The largest Indian restaurant in Southeast Asia has opened in Pattaya. The restaurant, named “MumbaiSe,” is located at the Stardice Pub on the Pattaya-Naklua road. The restaurant held its opening ceremony on Saturday night, with many Pattaya officials attending, including Mayor Poramese Ngampiches. The founders are two Indian businessmen who have invested 25 million baht in the restaurant. The restaurant will…
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Pattaya International Bikini Beach Race draws 3,000 runners
Interested in watching a 5-kilometre running race? What if all the runners are scantily clad in bikinis? On Saturday, the Pattaya International Bikini Beach Race was held and welcomed 3,000 participants. The event is thrown each year in Pattaya and welcomes hundreds of tourists. The annual race started in 2015 and is held along the beach in Pattaya. The idea…
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A scammer who posed as police chief arrested in central Thailand
A scammer who posed as a police chief was arrested in Thailand’s central Ayutthaya province on Friday. A team of officers from the Police Cyber Taskforce (PCT) arrested the man, 32 year old Chonwicha Pansamut, in the Wang Noi district, according to the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB). Authorities have evidence that Chonwicha claimed to be the Chiang Rai city district…
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Royal Caribbean Cruises to dock weekly in Phuket, Thailand
Earlier this month, Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas cruise ship docked in Phuket, southern Thailand, for the first time in several years. At an event in Phuket yesterday, Royal Caribbean revealed that the Spectrum would be visiting Phuket once a week in the coming months. Phuket is a ‘core destination’ on Royal Caribbean’s four- to seven-night Southeast Asia cruises,…
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Death toll up to 98 in Philippines, more storms predicted
The death toll in the Philippines has risen to almost 100 after Tropical Storm Nalgae hit the island nation over the weekend. Reports say 98 people have died as a result of the storm sweeping across the Southeast Asian country. The Philippines disaster agency reported that about half the deaths were recorded in the southern autonomous region of Bangsamoro because…
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Thailand to experience total lunar eclipse during Loy Krathong Festival
Thailand’s annual Loy Krathong Festival will be even more magical than usual this year as a total lunar eclipse will grace the sky on the same day, making the moon appear brick red, according to the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT). The total lunar eclipse will take place on the same day as Loy Krathong Festival on November…
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5 security guards on drugs arrested for robbing army residence
Five security guards were arrested yesterday after they robbed an army residence in Bangkok. The thieves stole four lightning rods worth 200,000 baht but only received 16,000 baht for the stolen goods. The group also tested positive for drugs. A soldier in charge of the security of army condominiums, inside the Royal Thai Armed Forces headquarters in the Don Mueng district…
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Koh Samui sees influx of Russian tourism
With flights increasing from Russia to Thailand, Koh Samui is seeing an increase in European travellers. The holiday island expects to see a surge in Russian tourism in particular, especially in December to close out the year. Russian tourism has been a big revenue-producing staple of Koh Samui but was stymied by the Covid-19 pandemic and then the Russian invasion…
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Chinese man and his Thai wife arrested for illegal possession of guns
A Chinese man and his Thai wife were arrested for illegally possessing several guns in their Phuket luxury home. Police searched the house of the Chinese man and his Thai wife in the Kathu district on Friday after the man had reportedly shown off his weapons on social media. The police found 18 firearms, most of which were BB guns. However,…
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Thai-Scottish man swims 30 kilometres to and from an island in southern Thailand
A half-Thai half-Scottish man made headlines in Thai media this weekend after swimming 30 kilometres from Ao Nang beach in Krabi province, southern Thailand, to Poda Island and back again. The 26 year old “merman,” Siranat, swam from Thailand’s West coast to Poda Island and back on Saturday. He said it took over six hours in total. Siranat posted pictures…
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Malaysian man fined 99,000 baht after a wheelspin damages parked cars
A Malaysian man showboating in his luxury car was fined about 100,000 baht for causing damage to four parked cars after a wheelspin in Songkhla province in the south of Thailand. Four Thai car owners reported to police on Friday that their cars had been damaged by rocks after a Malaysian tourist drifted his 5-million baht luxury car, a dark…
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Thai man cooks and eats wild snapping turtle that bit his finger
Yesterday, a Thai man attempted to capture a wild snapping turtle from a river in Kanchanaburi province in western Thailand. The feisty turtle bit the man’s middle finger and wouldn’t let go, causing a serious injury. When the injured man returned from the hospital, he cooked and ate the turtle for dinner. Rescue workers rushed to Tha Maka district yesterday…
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Murderer surrenders after stabbing wrong man in Phuket
A murderer surrendered to police after stabbing a man to death in front of a grocery store in Phuket on Saturday. The killer claimed that he stabbed the wrong person, thinking that the man he murdered was his enemy. The alleged murderer, 35 year old Pannawit, stabbed 49 year old Charoen Panngen on Saturday morning in front of a shopping…
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A man in South Thailand causes floods by stealing drainage equipment worth 2 million baht
A man in the Trang province of South Thailand has caused floods by stealing public drainage equipment worth 2 million baht, Thai media reported yesterday. The man, 30 year old Permpol, allegedly stole the equipment in Trang’s main city district. He reportedly stole parts including gears, gate valves, water drainage screws, and panelboards. Residents complained to Trang police, who gathered evidence…
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20 arrested by Muslim officers at Malaysian LGBTQ+ party
If you are in Malaysia, choose your Halloween costume wisely. Muslim officers arrested 20 people and broke up a 1,000-person LGBTQ+ Halloween party, citing cross-dressing and encouraging vice. Activists reported that Islamic religious authorities raided the popular party at REXKL in Kuala Lumpur late Saturday night. The party was attended by many members of the LGBTQ+ community in Malaysia’s largely-Muslim…
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VIDEO: 130 dead in pedestrian bridge tragedy in India
The death toll is rising after a century-old pedestrian bridge collapsed in India yesterday with over 130 people reported dead. Officials reported it collapsed because of overcrowding. The pedestrian bridge in Morbi in the western Indian state of Gujarat collapsed at about 6.40pm with hundreds of people gathered on it as they celebrated the Diwali festival. The 230 metre bridge…
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The history of Thailand’s lottery
Almost all forms of gambling are illegal in Thailand with one exception – the country’s lottery. The bi-monthly lottery draw has brought great fortunes to many people. The next draw is tomorrow, and you might be interested to learn some fun facts about its history. The lottery first began in 1874 on King Chulalongkorn’s birthday. The king had given the…
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Anti-graft agency to seize Joe Ferrari estate
Former chief of police Thitisan “Joe Ferrari” Utthanaphon will have his assets seized after he was charged by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) for having riches beyond his pay grade. The NACC found Ferrari guilty of “being unusually rich” and proposed his estate worth 1 billion baht would be confiscated, reported Bangkok Post. The NACC will forward its finding to…
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13 year old girl rescued from prostitution ring in Malaysia
A teenage Thai girl applied for a job on a social media site promising a minimum of 20,000 baht a month salary. The 13 year old girl was then forced into prostitution in Malaysia. Yesterday, she was returned to Thailand with the help of the Human Trafficking Prevention and Suppression Division in Thailand and the police in Malaysia. Police broke…
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Korat elephants face further persecution from farmers
As if the remains of Thailand’s decimated elephant population have not suffered enough persecution, farmers in Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat) still refuse to live in harmony with their big grey neighbours. A local leader has called on authorities to address the problem – if it is one – of wild elephants from Thap Lan National Park invading farmland and destroying crops. Oraya…
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US in Asia: President Biden to ASEAN meeting, VP Harris to APEC
Top US officials are set to visit Southeast Asia, with US President Joe Biden joining the ASEAN summit in Cambodia next month, and Vice President Kamala Harris heading to Bangkok for an APEC meeting. The White House has now confirmed that Biden will join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for their meeting on November 12 and 13. Harris…
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Who blew it? Putin blames UK Royal Navy for Nord Stream blast
Russia’s defence ministry has accused the British Royal Navy of sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipelines last month, a claim that London vigorously denies. Moscow did not provide any evidence to back up its assertion, saying that “British specialists” from the same unit directed Ukrainian drone attacks on the Russian Black Sea fleet in Crimea causing minor damage to a…
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Thailand hits 7 million international tourists
Thailand’s tourism has hit another milestone. As of October 26, the kingdom witnessed 7,349,843 international tourists arriving, surpassing the 7 million mark. It’s put the country within its goal range set by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) of 7 to 10 million visitors for 2022. The TAT announced that over 7 million tourists have arrived since January 1 in…
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Halloween stampede in Seoul leaves 149 dead, dozens injured
Pandemonium struck a Halloween event in Korea’s capital city of Seoul with at least 149 people killed in a stampede. Dozens more were injured in the Itaewon district as reports estimate as many as 100,000 people came out last night for a giant Halloween celebration. Crowds quickly overfilled the narrow alleyways that snake through the district and the congestion began…
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