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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Thai Airways has sold 11 of its old aircraft, 26 to go
Thai Airways has managed to sell the first 11 aircraft out of a total of 37 it has put up for sale as part of its bankruptcy recovery program. The airline’s acting president, Chansin Treenuchagron, ay Thailand’s transport minister has permitted Thai Airways to sell 1 older Boeing 737-400 plane and 10 Boeing 747-400 ‘Jumbo’ jets. Thai Airways had found…
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Officials to build new sky walk and glass terrace in Phuket
Officials in Phuket plan to build 2 new structures in different parts of the island province. A skywalk is planned for Phuket’s southern village of Rawai, and a glass terrace is planned for Surin Beach in the northern Thalang district. The President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation, Rewat Areerob, said that Phuket is trying to build more landmarks to…
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Thai state bank offers loans to LGBTQ+ couples for first time
Thailand’s state-run Government Housing Bank has taken a progressive step forward by offering mortgage loans to couples in the LGBTQ+ community. The move by the Bangkok-based financial institution could lead the way forward for more change, such as same-sex marriage in Thailand, after the bank’s pioneering move made it easier for the Thai Pride community to own their own home.…
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More fighting between Karen and Burmese army, villagers injured
Another round of violence has broken out between Karen forces and the Burmese army. Now, 2 injured Burmese villagers are being treated at a Thai hospital in the border province of Tak. The men, 30 and 33 years old, have shrapnel wounds to their heads and legs. Sources said Karen soldiers had taken a base from Burmese troops, and a…
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Philippines’ SEC orders news publisher Rappler to shut down
Maria Ressa, apart from anything else, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, CEO, and owner of the news organisation Rappler in the Philippines announced that the government has ordered her to shut the company down. “The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission had upheld its earlier ruling to revoke the news site’s operating license. The former TIME Person of the Year, Maria…
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UPDATE: Former Special Branch Officer names police involved in illegal casino operation
UPDATE An ex-Special Branch Bureau officer has revealed the names of police involved in the operation of an illegal casino in Bangkok that was raided last Friday and denies he had any part of it. Former Pol Lt Col Santana Prayoonrat was discharged from the police service 20 years ago after obstructing officers from making arrests in regards to an…
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Century old woman in Pattaya to be honoured for long life
A 100 year old woman in Pattaya is alive and kicking. The woman, Ladda Rattanaoran, has passed a physical exam “with flying colors”, according to Pattaya Mail. A nurse said Ladda was still energetic for her age after the checkup earlier this week. Now, Ladda is scheduled to be honoured for her long life at a ceremony on July 8.…
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Taxi driver faces prison after allegedly attacking policeman while drunk
A taxi driver faces prison after allegedly attacking a policeman while under the influence of alcohol and fleeing the scene. The taxi driver, Charoensak Boonchuay, was spotted driving erratically by a police officer, Pongpan Ponchai, on his way home from work yesterday. Pongpan followed Charoensak until he parked his green and yellow cab in front of Huachiew Chalermprakiet University near…
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Land and building tax payment extended by 3 months
The land and building tax payment schedule has been extended by 3 months to assist residents and business owners to navigate through difficult financial waters. The end of April deadline has been relaxed until the end of July. Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda says the extra time will allow taxpayers to pay without penalties, and those who have been fined will…
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3 year old one of several Thai children recovering from cannabis-related incidents
The Royal College of Paediatricians of Thailand and the Paediatrics Society of Thailand has reported a spate of serious health-threatening, cannabis-related cases involving a 3 year old child and several other children. Only last week Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt revealed his fears for the health and safety of Thailand’s children after the decriminalisation of cannabis on June 9 while a…
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Tourist in Chon Buri gets car damaged after parking in someone’s usual spot
A tourist in Chon Buri’s Sri Racha District was in for a nasty shock earlier this week when he parked his car on Koh Loy island. The tourist, 29 year old Chutiphong Thongmee, had parked his car there before boarding a ferry to another island. When Chutiphong returned from his day trip, he was horrified to discover that his car…
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Locals near Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach like the ban on vendors
Locals around Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach are liking the new ban on street and beach vendors who were clogging up the pathways and beach space. Na Jomtien Municipality started enforcing the ban on Monday (June 27), barring all businesses from reserving spaces on the beach, sidewalks, and roads, to operate for personal benefits. Those who violate the ban could face a…
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Phuket welcomes more than 1.7 million travellers so far in 2022
The southern Thai island of Phuket welcomed more than 1.7 million visitors from January to the end of May, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Phuket office. Phuket, the most reliant of Thai provinces for a steady flow of tourists, has suffered over the past 2 years and has relied on the government’s travel stimulus packages to keep some…
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Sri Lanka suspends sale of petrol to public for next 2 weeks
The supply of petrol for cars in Sri Lanka has been suspended due to the country’s greatest economic crisis in decades. Only buses, trains, ambulances, and transport needed to deliver food will be permitted to refuel over the next 2 weeks. Authorities revealed that only 9,000 tonnes of diesel and 6,000 tonnes of gasoline are available to support the nation’s…
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Thai netizens berate government for wasting public cash on working holidays
Thai netizens have slammed government officials in the central province of Pathum Thani for wasting taxes on a pointless trip to Phang Nga and Phuket. Government officials from the Mueng Tha Khlong District were supposed to be taking part in a working seminar to develop women’s potential in Phang Nga, and Phuket, from June 23 – 26. But the non-profit…
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British boxer vows to get back in ring after Thai horror crash
A British Muay Thai boxer vowed to get up off the floor and back into the ring after a horror crash in Koh Samui left him fighting for his life. Chris Richardson was crushed by a pickup truck as he pulled out of a coffee shop on his motorbike on April 13 earlier this year. The injuries were so severe…
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Foreign sex pest caught assaulting Thai beauty contestant
A drunken foreign man was caught sexually assaulting a female contestant at the recent Miss Universe Thailand beauty contest. The sex pest was captured harassing the woman at the parade, part of the Pattaya International Pride Festival 2022, last Sunday on a Facebook Live stream. Kasama “Tangkwa” Sue-tong, who was the third runner-up in the contest, told the Miss Universe…
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Power lines and transformers to be checked after fatal Bangkok Chinatown fire
After a fire on Sunday in the crowded Sampeng market, in Chinatown, took the lives of 2 people, Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt asked the Metropolitan Electricity Authority to investigate the safety of almost 400 power transformers and power lines around Bangkok. According to eyewitnesses, smoke was coming from the power transformer before the fire broke out through the surrounding shophouses,…
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Thai PM makes bizarre ‘go easy on me’ plea to media
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday made a bizarre appeal to the nation’s press to “go easy” and give him a fair crack of the whip. The 68 year old prime minister made the plea after a recent poll put him in fourth position as potential picks to be Thailand’s next prime minister, a long way behind the daughter of former PM…
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Best destinations for a low-season yacht charter in Phuket 2022
Fancy a sailing vacation in Phuket that won’t break the bank? Chartering a yacht in Phuket during the low season is the perfect answer. The low season in Phuket runs from May to October. While it is technically the rainy season, booking a yacht charter in Phuket during these months doesn’t mean compromising your experience. In fact, lots of savvy…
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Majority of international travel to Phuket is from India
The majority of international visitors to Phuket since the beginning of 2022 came from India, but half of the hotels on the island remain closed as they wait for the high season to begin. Even if the number of arrivals doubled by the end of the year, Phuket’s tourist numbers are still falling well short of pre-Covid levels. Between May…
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Fake voucher victims demand action against Pattaya travel agent
Angry victims lured into buying fake vouchers worth millions of baht are demanding immediate police action against a Chon Buri-based travel company after six months of procrastination. Sixty victims yesterday submitted a letter to the Central Investigation Bureau commissioner asking him to follow up on their complaints about being conned into buying fake vouchers from the Colour Ocean Group. A…
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Thai Health Minister Anutin tests positive for Covid-19
The Thai Deputy PM and Minister of Public Health, Anutin Charnvirakul, has tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving back from a UNAIDS meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. The minister was reported to have only mild symptoms at this time as he had already completed 6 doses of the Covid vaccine. Autin and other authorities from the Ministry of Public Health, Foreign…
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Thai man jailed for rape in London massage parlour
London Metropolitan Police is appealing for more women to come forward after a Thai massage therapist was jailed for 11 years for the rape and sexual assault of two women. Kensington-based Mongkhon Thopwan was sentenced on Friday after being convicted on March 21 of 5 counts of assault by penetration, and one count of causing a person to engage in…
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Welcome to Thailand’s Post Pandemic Day – July 1. What will change?
Between the start of this year and last Sunday, June 26, just over 2 million foreign travellers were stamped into Thailand at immigration points, mostly at 2 airports – Suvarnabhumi and Phuket. During this time the impediments to arrival in Thailand also became less restrictive. This Friday, July 1, there will be an official declaration that Thailand is now in…
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City chief calls for residents to check for hazards after 131 fire incidents in 2022
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt has asked residents in the city to inspect their properties and the surrounding areas for potential fire hazards, to inspect the condition of their fire extinguishers, and check their fire exits. A deadly fire in Chinatown’s Sampeng Market this weekend saw 2 people die and 6 others suffer from the effects of smoke inhalation, while some residents…
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School director fired after allegedly covering up rape of 11 year old girl
An investigation has been launched to discover why the female director of a school in the central province of Kanchanaburi allegedly asked an 11 year old schoolgirl to keep quiet over her rape ordeal. The 11 year old girl was raped by a 12 year old boy in the classroom at a school in the Wichian Buri district on Tuesday,…
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4.3 million baht seized in police raid on illegal casino
A police raid that seized 4.3 million baht from an illegal underground gambling den has sparked a bizarre war of words between the authorities and a nongovernmental organisation. More than 4.3 million baht was seized after police raided an illegal casino hidden on the underground floor of the Ayothaya Tower on Ratchadapisak Soi 18 in Huay Kwang district of Bangkok.…
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Thailand to be “post pandemic” this week, not endemic
Post-pandemic or endemic? As Covid-19 is now projected to affect only small to medium sized slices of the population going forward, the Public Health Ministry will declare Thailand to be in post-pandemic mode from this Friday, according to health permanent secretary Kiattiphum Wongrajit. July 1 coincides with the abolition of the Thailand Pass pre-travel digital gateway for overseas visitors, along…
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NIDA poll puts Thailand’s opposition parties way ahead of the government
Thais have placed a candidate for the next Thai PM at the top of a recent poll. And that person hasn’t even declared they will run for the top job at this stage. Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the youngest daughter of former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra, has scored the top position in the latest popularity poll conducted by the NIDA poll. Paetongtarn…
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