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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Former Thai PM issues death penalty warning to coup-makers
Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra last night fired a warning to the nation’s coup-makers that they could still face the death sentence in the future. Thaksin, who also turned his ire on current PM Prayut Chan-o-cha labelling him “a dictator” and someone “increasingly disconnected from reality,” says he hopes he will receive justice for the wrongs against him and punishment…
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Thailand exempts cryptocurrency transfer VAT until 2023
The Royal Thai Government Gazette has formally announced a VAT exemption for transferring cryptocurrency from now until the end of 2023. The cabinet had approved the exemption of the value added tax, or VAT, for transferring cryptocurrency or digital tokens in March. Yesterday, the decision was passed into Thai law and will be in effect from yesterday until December 31,…
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As fuel prices climb, Thailand’s delivery workers struggle
As Thailand’s fuel prices climb, some delivery drivers are saying the country’s attempts at subsidies aren’t helping them much. One motorcycle taxi driver told Thai PBS World that, even though the government offers a 250 baht discount per month on benzene or gasohol, it’s not worth it when he has to travel a long distance for it. The driver added that…
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Teacher filmed cutting bald patches into 10 students’ hair in northeast Thailand
A secondary school student from Nakhon Ratchasima province, northeast Thailand, secretly filmed a teacher cutting bald patches into the hair of 10 male students and posted the video on social media. Netizens have criticised the teacher’s actions as inappropriate and a violation of children’s rights. The director of Suranee Wittaya 2 school in Mueang district said the teacher has since…
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Disability rights activist jailed for shaming a motorist parked in a disabled bay
A disability rights activist was jailed after posting a picture of a motorist occupying a parking spot reserved for disabled drivers and now faces up to two years in prison for libeling the man. Manit Intharapim uploaded a picture on his Facebook page of a Toyota Hilux Revo of what he thought was someone illegally occupying a disabled parking space…
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Body found on Chon Buri beach
Tourists spotted a body on a beach in the main city district of Chon Buri province yesterday. Emergency workers said in a report that the body found on Bang Saen Beach belonged to 40 year old Phu Sao, a Burmese boat worker who had gone missing after he fell into the ocean. One emergency responder estimated that Phu had been…
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Former air force officer murders ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend in Bangkok
A former Royal Thai Air Force officer murdered his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend at a house in Ratchathewi district in Bangkok yesterday morning. The perpetrator broke into the couple’s home and shot dead 24 year old Fah and 25 year old Korakot before fleeing the house. Fah was shot twice in the head and body and Korakot was shot…
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Large banana plantation near Bangkok goes viral, Thai netizens say owner wants to avoid land tax
One of the biggest exhibition centres and event venues, Impact Arena, in the central province of Nonthaburi, basically just north of Bangkok, is showing off its large banana plantation on their official Facebook page. The page claims the CEO desires to increase green spaces for people, but Thai netizens have figured out it’s just a way the controlling company is…
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Phuket police search for kidnapper and young girl he abducted months ago
Police are still on the hunt for a man who kidnapped a young girl on Rawai Beach in the main city district of Phuket in February. The girl’s mother reported the kidnapping on February 9, saying that a 33 year old man named only as ‘Camp’ abducted her 13-year-old daughter while the girl was selling flowers on Rawai Beach in…
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Thai nurse arrested for conning the public out of millions of baht in flu vaccine scam
A Thai nurse has been arrested, accused of defrauding the public in a flu vaccine scam that netted millions of baht. According to media reports, 38-year-old Thonglim Jitpeng was arrested in the Bang Na district of Bangkok. She has denied the charges against her. According to reports, Thonglim ran a business selling hand sanitiser during the pandemic, which enabled her…
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Bangkok governor-elect calls for calm and unity to get through the political storm
Chadchart Sittipunt has called for the citizens of Bangkok to put their differences to one side and come together in unity. The Bangkok governor-elect celebrated his 56th birthday yesterday with twin brother, Dr Chanchai Sittipunt, an associate professor and dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Chulalongkorn University, but still made time to send out a positive message amid squabbling…
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Government says PM listening to concerns over draft law on public gatherings, NGO funding
The Thai PM is paying attention to, and welcomes, the opinions of those opposed to a draft law on NGO funding and public gatherings. So says deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam, according to a report in the Bangkok Post today. Wissanu says Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the Social Development and Human Security Ministry to compile a list of objections to the…
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Alleged drug dealer from Estonia arrested in Chon Buri after hiding for 4 years
An alleged drug dealer who managed to hide from police for 4 years has now been arrested in Bang Lamung district of Chon Buri province last week. Police arrested him for having a visa that expired in 2018. The alleged dealer, 39 year old Estonian national Janno Ojaste, was sentenced to three years in prison and a 4,000 baht fine…
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Policeman suspended after kicking, stomping on 2 handcuffed teenagers
A police officer at Sam Phran station in the central province of Nakhon Pathom has been suspended after video footage emerged of him and another officer assaulting 2 teenagers. According to a Bangkok Post report, both victims were handcuffed at the time and the video footage shows they were on the ground. Chaiyapoj Khotsamrarn, deputy crime suppression chief at Sam…
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Teenage gunman goes on rampage killing 19 children and 2 adults at a Texas primary school
Nineteen children and 2 adults have been shot dead at a Texas elementary school. The 18 year old gunman burst into the Robb Elementary School in the city of Uvalde just before noon on Tuesday, Texas time, and opened fire on students aged between 5 and 11, fatally shooting 19 victims before making his escape. The alleged shooter, identified by Texas…
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19 children, 2 teachers killed as gunman opens fire at primary school in Texas
The death toll in this tragic mass shooting may rise. We will update the story through the day. 19 young children and 2 teachers have been shot dead at another school shooting in the US, this time at a primary school in the state of Texas. According to an AFP report, an 18 year old gunman entered the school, in…
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Health ministry asks international airports to screen for monkeypox symptoms
Thailand’s deputy health minister says the country’s international airports are being asked to screen arrivals for monkeypox symptoms. According to Sathit Pitutecha, the screening will apply in particular to travellers from 17 countries where cases of the virus have been reported. “Each airport has a disease control unit and officials will intensify measures against monkeypox by being more vigilant.” The…
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Why you should study Thai to explore Thailand
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Thai cult’s food products tested – feces, bacteria and mould detected
An update on the hidden cult commune in the Isaan province of Chaiyaphum… Local health authorities found the cult was operating a food businesses and seized all of the products for further investigation. The test results showed that the food samples from the group contained excessive amounts of mould, Coliform and bacteria, usually found in feces. At the start of…
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Thailand could drop its mask mandate by mid-June, says Ministry of Public Health
After two years of compulsory mask-wearing in indoor and outdoor spaces, Thailand aims to drop its mask mandate by mid-June, according to the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Health Dr. Kiattipoom Wongrachit. At a conference held today at Diamond Plaza hotel in Surat Thani, southern Thailand, Kiattipoom said the ministry is considering dropping the compulsory mandate as soon…
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Fowl play by Malaysian cartels forces government to ban export of poultry
The Malaysia government yesterday revealed it is banning the export of all poultry from the country while it investigates the illegal activity of cartels controlling the price and shipment of its produce. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob made it known Malaysia will halt the exports of 3.6 million chickens a month from June 1, to investigate the cartel pricing allegations.…
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British Embassy sparks controversy in Indonesia by raising LGBT+ flag
The British Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, hoisted a rainbow LGBT+ flag last week to mark the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia on May 17. However, Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs have called the action “highly insensitive” to Indonesian people and have urged other foreign officials not to follow suit. The British Embassy posted a photo of the raised…
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Phuket opens new prison facility with more space as demand increases
The Department of Correction has officially opened a new prison in Phuket in response to the increasing number of inmates. The new prison has much more space compared to the former, notoriously small, prison facility in Phuket Town. The inmates have now been moved from the old prison to their new, hopefully temporary, home. The prison has nearly 3,000 inmates…
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Commerce Ministry says Thais should sell to Chinese customers on TikTok
The Ministry of Commerce has come up with a cunning plan that Thai people could make more money by selling products, especially clothes, to Chinese people via the popular TikTok app. The ministry also came up with tips and ideas for Thai sellers who want to win new Chinese customers on TikTok. Yesterday, the Director-General of the Department of International…
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AirAsia plane lands on wrong runway in Bangkok
Today, Thailand’s Civil Aviation Authority – or CAAT – reported a “serious incident” which took place earlier this month. On May 4, an AirAsia Airbus A320-200 landed on the wrong runway at Bangkok’s Don Muang Airport. The Thai AirAsia aircraft departed Ranong city at 12:43 and landed on Don Muang’s unassigned 21L runway at 13:36, instead of the 21R runway…
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The QUAD Summit in Tokyo – what is QUAD, who’s attending and what are they talking about?
Leaders of the US, Australia, Japan and India are meeting today at the QUAD Summit 2022 in Tokyo to discuss the ever-growing economic influence of China in the region, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and India’s ongoing trade war and relationship with Russia. US President Joe Biden yesterday stoked regional political fires, prior to today’s summit, during a media conference with…
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Luxury Parliamentary Club open for Thai MPs with spa, karaoke and massage rooms
The recently opened Parliament House of Thailand will have a new luxury Parliamentary Club for House of Representatives MPs and Senators to relax, with a spa, massage, karaoke room, fitness, gyms, ballroom dance and other recreation activities. Yesterday, the Chairman of the Senate committee to Organise Activities for Social Benefit and Recreational Activities of the Senate, Peerasak Porchit, took Thai…
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Thailand defends human trafficking record
Thailand yesterday defended its human trafficking record and hit back at US accusations that the illegal transportation of people is a critical national problem. A Thai delegation, led by Chettaphan Maksamphan, director-general of the Department of American and South Pacific Affairs, met with US Department of State officials in Washington last week to discuss the matter ahead of the 2022…
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Dozens of Rohingya die off Myanmar coast after boat capsizes on way to Malaysia
A boat carrying at least 90 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar’s Rakhine state to Malaysia capsized off the coast of Myanmar on Saturday, killing at least 14 people, mostly children. More than 50 passengers remain missing after the boat capsized during a storm and 23 survivors were detained by police in Pathein district in Myanmar’s Ayeryarwady region. The UN reports that…
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Thai man held hostage by Laos bandits found dead in Mekong River
The body of a Thai man held hostage by Laos bandits has been fished out of the Mekong River. Kingpai Khattiyanond washed ashore in Muang district, Nakhon Phanom province on Sunday, where his dead, bloated, tattooed body was found bound and gagged. The 35 year old man was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and black trousers, his hands were tied…
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