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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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9 most common health issues covered by insurance for expats in Thailand
Thailand is a popular destination for expats due to its affordable lifestyle and excellent healthcare system. However, settling in a new country often brings health concerns. To ensure you’re covered for the most common medical needs, understanding what expat health...
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Truck crushes motorbike rider to death in Phuket
A tragic road death occurred in Phuket after a truck crushed a motorbike rider‘s head yesterday morning. A Facebook post with a video of the incident by Phuket Info Center read… “At 10.39am today (March 23), there was an accident involving a motorcyclist who lost control [of his bike] and fell under the rear wheels of a truck. He was…
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Man brought to psychiatric hospital after disturbing neighbours in Patong
A man in Patong was brought to a psychiatric hospital after he disturbed his neighbours with his erratic behaviour. Patong Police said they were alerted of the incident at around 9.45am yesterday. The man was reportedly acting crazy in his apartment on Ratchapathanusorn Road and possibly presented a danger to himself and others. The police arrived at the apartment to…
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Police arrest 2 women in Buriram for alleged online child sexual exploitation
Police in Buriram arrested two women for alleged online child sexual exploitation in a raid on a bar-restaurant in the province this week. Officers reportedly uncovered two underage girls working in the establishment and two women were charged with exploiting the girls. The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division (ATPD Police) arrested the owner of the bar-restaurant, 35 year old Tuenjai ‘Kukkik’…
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80 year old woman survives floating 3 kilometres down Nan River in Thailand
An 80 year old Thai woman fell into the Nan River in Pichit province, northern Thailand, and floated for 3 kilometres before she was rescued by a good Samaritan yesterday. At 4pm, 61 year old Bancha Simadua, the owner of a paint shop, was fishing in the Nan River near Wat Ratchachang Kwan when he suddenly saw a naked body…
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Cat slaughterhouse shut down in Vietnam, 197 cats saved (video)
An industrial-scale cat slaughterhouse in the Dong Thap province of Vietnam, capable of slaughtering up to 500 innocent cats a day, has ceased all operations following landmark intervention from the authorities. The slaughterhouse, which has been in business for more than a decade, has been subject to two police raids in recent weeks, during which its owners were found not…
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DNA from hair helps researchers determine Ludwig van Beethoven’s illnesses
The DNA from Ludwig Van Beethoven’s hair is now being used to help researchers determine what made the famous composer ill. Nearly 200 years after his death, researchers say they pulled DNA strands from his hair to search for clues that would provide information about his known hearing loss and other health issues. Although they weren’t able to find out…
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Patong minivan crash injures four tourists and a driver
A Patong minivan crash injured four tourists and a driver. The crash happened when one minivan transporting foreign tourists crashed into another one on the road connecting Patong Beach and Kamala in Phuket. The accident occurred on Phra Baramee Road yesterday, at 11.35am. According to MGR Online, the accident occurred when one minivan drove out of its lane and collided with…
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Thai hackers arrested for breaking into energy drink computer system to steal prize money
Two Thai hackers are now under arrest after police say they broke into an energy drink company’s computer system to fraudulently claim prize monies. Thailand’s Technology Crime Suppression Division officers say they hacked the system and obtained more than 300,000 code numbers that were printed on the backs of drink caps. Using that information, the hackers planned to claim prize…
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Pattaya motorbike accident leaves two residents in grave condition
A Pattaya motorbike accident has left two residents in grave condition as one’s head became trapped under a car. The two were rushed to a local hospital, after colliding in South Pattaya. According to the Pattaya News, Sawang Boriboon rescue services arrived at the scene and found an elderly man stuck with his head trapped under a sedan. The other…
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Bangkok Airways to launch Koh Samui – Hong Kong route
Bangkok Airways revealed plans to launch a direct route between Koh Samui in Thailand and Hong Kong, aiming to “generate more revenue from foreign customers.” President of Bangkok Airways Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth revealed that a nonstop Koh Samui – Hong Kong flight is in the works and could launch sometime this year. The airline has also entered discussions to lease more…
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Thailand lottery winner thanks Buddha with 100 pig’s heads
A Thai lottery winner today laid out 100 pig’s heads in front of the famous 30-metre-tall Buddha statue at Wat Klang Bang Phra Temple in Nakhon Pathom province in central Thailand. The lucky winner, Panu Nawisamphan from Samut Prakan province, did not reveal how much money he won in the government lottery. Panu said his offering of 100 pig’s heads…
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Bangkok ranks 5th on Airbnb’s top trending global travel spots in 2023
Airbnb‘s latest data shows that Bangkok has emerged as one of the top global travel spots for 2023, coming in fifth on its list of top trending destinations. The Thai capital is No.5 on Airbnb’s list of top trending global travel spots in 2023, however, this is a slight drop since it was No.1 in the third quarter of last year.…
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Beachgoers find giant sea turtle carcass in Pattaya
While there’s been a lot of happy news about turtles in Phang Nga recently, there’s unfortunately been some sad turtle news in Pattaya. A giant sea turtle carcass washed up on Pattaya Beach on Tuesday. Beachgoers noticed the carcass and detected a foul odour in the early hours of the morning. They promptly informed the authorities of the discovery. Officials…
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Taiwanese woman wins 3kg chicken rice eating challenge in Bangkok
A Taiwanese woman shrugged aside the well-worn slogan “pleasure on the lips, lifetime on the hips” to emerge victorious in a food challenge at a restaurant in Bangkok. The foodie devoured 3 kilogrammes of chicken and rice in just 35 minutes, making her the 37th winner of the challenge since it was launched 10 years ago. The chicken rice shop,…
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Airports of Thailand to invest 37 billion baht in Don Mueang Airport
Airports of Thailand (AOT) is ready to invest US$1 billion (36.8 billion baht) to improve and expand the capacity of the low-cost terminal of Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport, AOT announced yesterday. AOT plans to increase capacity from 30 million to 40 million passengers per year by 2029, with construction beginning this year, according to a statement from AOT. The project…
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Thailand’s leading Muslim cleric announces the start of Ramadan
Thailand’s leading Muslim cleric announced the start of Ramadan yesterday. The cleric, Sheikul Islam Aziz Phitakkumpon, said… “As announced to Thai Muslims across the country to sight the new crescent moon after sunset on Wednesday, March 22, to mark the first day of Ramadan AH 1444. It has been confirmed that the new crescent moon has been sighted. So I…
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Thailand’s ‘The Pizza Company’ launches mango pizza
Move over pineapple, mango is the hottest pizza topping in Thailand this summer thanks to a special edition launch from nationwide pizza chain The Pizza Company. Everyone loves pizza, and everyone loves mango. But do they belong together? More specifically, does mango belong on a pizza with mozzarella cheese, croutons, mango sauce, cream cheese and coconut sauce? If your brain…
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Tour bus crash on Patong Hill seriously injures driver
A tour bus crashed into a power pole on Patong Hill early this morning, with the driver suffering serious injuries to his leg. The bus slammed into a power pole on the final curve heading into Patong on Phra Baramee Road at around 5am, The Phuket News reported. Police and rescuers arrived on the scene to find the red Phiphairat…
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3 year old boy dies after being trapped in car for 2 hours
A three year old boy suffocated to death after being trapped in his mother’s car in the Isaan province of Buriram. A rescue team attempted to save the child’s life but he died on the way to the hospital. Baan Bua Municipality Rescue Team rushed to a local restaurant in the Baan Bua sub-district of Buriram yesterday at 3pm after…
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Pattaya ping pong bomb hooligans injure 2 women
A group of teenage hooligans in Pattaya threw ping pong bombs at two women in the early hours of this morning, leaving them with injuries. The victims, 30 year old Nantawan Kosakun and 20 year old Saowalak Kanpratuyod, were riding their motorcycles home on Sukhumvit Road in North Pattaya. At around 1am, a group of approximately 10 teenagers on five…
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Pattaya Zumba lovers raise 100,000 baht for disabled boy
Zumba is a fun activity to stay in shape, but this week, Zumba lovers in Pattaya also used the activity to raise money for a good cause. The street food market The Smile Land Pattaya, located on Phettrakul Road in Bang Lamung District, hosted an event, ‘Zumba Charity Party,’ on Monday. The Muscle Factory Pattaya gym sponsored the event, Pattaya…
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Thai buffalo becomes beauty influencer
Social media is full of influencers reviewing makeup and cosmetic products, but one Thai beauty queen, Kalaya, is set apart from the rest. She’s a buffalo and she’s taking the Internet by storm. Kalaya’s owner Mod doesn’t raise any old buffaloes, but pageant buffaloes, which are specially bred to be strong and beautiful. In one video gaining nearly 90,000 likes…
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6 Vietnamese timber smugglers arrested in Isaan wildlife sanctuary
Wildlife rangers and officers from Chaiyaphum Police Station arrested six Vietnamese timber smugglers at the weekend at Phu Khiao Wildlife Sanctuary in Chaiyaphum province in the Isaan region of Thailand. The suppression of the Vietnamese timber smuggling gangs started last year after Phu Khiao Wildlife Sanctuary wildlife rangers were notified that a group of Vietnamese men entered the sanctuary to…
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Recovered Caesium-137 cannister ‘not a threat to local Thai produce’
Thai officials say the recently recovered Caesium-137 canister is not a threat to local produce, despite it being smelted. The concerns over the effects of the tube’s radioactive properties were raised as contaminated furnace dust was discovered at a steel plant in Prachin Buri’s Kabin Buri district this week. Out of fear, customers cancelled purchase orders of fruit from the province,…
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Burmese migrant worker killed by fallen lamppost in Thailand
A lamppost toppled onto and killed a young Burmese migrant worker at a worker’s camp in Samut Prakan province, just south of Bangkok in central Thailand, yesterday morning. At 11.30am, officers at Bang Phli Police Station, doctors from Bang Phli Hospital and rescue workers from the Ruam Katanyu Foundation were called to a construction site in the Bang Phli Yai…
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More suspects arrested in phone scam duping Americans out of 3 billion baht
More suspects are now in Thai police custody in relation to the phone scam that duped unsuspecting elderly Americans out of 3 billion baht. According to the Bangkok Post, 20 people have been arrested- 15 Thais and five Indian nationals- for their involvement in a phone scam that preyed on Americans. Police say they raided places in the provinces of…
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Chinese netizens critisised Thai tourism for being expensive and dangerous
Chinese netizens criticised Thai tourism for being expensive and dangerous. A Chinese male influencer who claims to be a psychiatrist added Thailand also traps Chinese women in prostitution and is a nation of organ trafficking. Thai tourism was a hot topic on Chinese social media last week. It began when a Chinese media agency published an article on March 13,…
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After Patong bar bust, police on the prowl for human trafficking in Pattaya (video)
After the Patong bar bust that made headlines last week, police are on the prowl for human trafficking in Pattaya. Police on Tuesday night carried out a joint operation in a bid to prevent human trafficking, illegal drugs, minors, and the carrying of weapons in nightspots in the area. The operation involved a police team comprised of officers from Pattaya…
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Thai police shoot dead Phetchaburi gunman after 14 hour standoff, 3 dead, 3 injured
UPDATE At 4am, SWAT police shot dead the ex-military ranger who went on a gun rampage yesterday killing three people and injuring three more in Petchaburi province in lower central Thailand. Pol. Lt. Gen. Thanayut Wuthiratanayong said that after 14 hours of failed negotiations, the gunman showed no signs of surrender so the police took decisive action to kill him…
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TST pledge to reform military, abolish conscription, a voter winner with Thailand’s youth
The Thai Sang Thai Party (TST) pledges to reform Thailand‘s military and abolish conscription if they are elected in the upcoming General Election on May 14. This move appears to be aimed at attracting young voters who are often reluctant to undergo military service due to the fear of losing productive years, harsh training, poor welfare, and hazing. Under the…
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