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 How one hospital visit in Thailand could cost more than your whole trip
Thailand is a favourite spot for travellers who want to enjoy more while spending less. From cheap street food to low-cost hotels and fun attractions, it’s easy to stretch your budget here. But there’s one thing many people don’t think...
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Phuket ‘ready’ to open nightclubs until 4am
The Phuket Tourism Association is pushing for later closing times in nightclubs. Entertainment venues in Phuket, southern Thailand, are “ready” to open until 4am, according to the Chairman of the Phuket Tourism Association Thanet Tanipirayakit. The association hopes to extend the closing times of entertainment venues on Patong beach’s Bangla Road from 2am to 4am in a Phuket Sandbox-style pilot…
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Thai man robbed by cannabis dealer at knife-point in Pattaya
A Thai man filed a complaint with police after he was allegedly forced to strip naked as he was being robbed at knife-point by a cannabis dealer in Pattaya. The suspect was arrested but denied all allegations, saying they were friends and he would never rob a friend. Anukun Sichan filed the complaint at Mueng Pattaya Police Station yesterday at 8pm.…
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Indian tourist in Pattaya reportedly missing over US$6,000
An Indian tourist in Pattaya is reportedly missing over US$6,000 after staying at a hotel in the city for just two days, The Pattaya News reported yesterday. The man, 45 year old Vivek Singhal, told Pattaya officials that he had arrived at his hotel on October 5. Two days later he realised that the US$6,600 he had left in the…
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Alcohol sales ban in Thailand today to mark end of Buddhist Lent
Thailand celebrates an auspicious Buddhist holiday today known as ‘Awk Pansa‘ (exit Pansa) to mark the final day of Buddhist Lent. Being one of Thailand’s five major Buddhist holidays, alcohol sales are banned for 24 hours nationwide. Saffron-robed monks and white-robed maechis exit their temples today for the first time since July 14, upon completion of a period of focussed…
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‘Give China some control of Taiwan,’ says Elon Musk
United States business magnate Elon Musk embroiled himself in the politically sensitive One China-Taiwan debate over the weekend. Unsurprisingly, the Tesla CEO’s controversial comments in the Financial Times caused a backlash and, even more surprisingly, drew praise. The world’s richest man endeared himself to China, but not Taiwan, suggesting the mainland should have some control over the island to resolve…
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ICONSIAM joins forces with BMW to provide EV charging station-equipped exclusive car park
Press Release ICONSIAM and BMW Group Thailand have extended privileges to BMW motorists with exclusive parking at Bangkok’s world-class riverside landmark. The collaboration between the two parties sees an easily accessible section of ICONSIAM’s UG floor set aside for reserved parking and an advanced electric vehicle charging station. The space can serve five vehicles at one time with two slots…
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Police let off CNN reporters with 5,000 baht fine over invasive massacre reporting
Deputy police chief ‘Big Joke‘ has done a 180 degree turn on CNN, letting off reporters with just a 5,000 baht fine (US$132) each for their invasive coverage of the daycare centre massacre in Nong Bua Lamphu province in northeast Thailand. On Saturday, Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn insisted on prosecuting two members of CNN staff for breaking into the crime…
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Bangkok road sweeper dies in hit-and-run
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is to pay 1.6 million baht in compensation to the family of a road sweeper who died in a hit-and-run incident on Kanchanapisek Road in the capital yesterday. The driver is on the run and there was no CCTV camera footage at the scene. The 59 year old woman road sweeper, Somsi Yimchalam, was hit…
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How to donate to families of victims of daycare centre massacre in Thailand
The Thai government has opened a channel for the public to donate money to families impacted by the massacre of 37 people, mostly young children, at a daycare centre in Nong Bua Lamphu province, northeast Thailand, last Thursday. If you would like to donate to the injured or the families of those who lost their lives, you can transfer your…
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British man & wife gives 50,000 baht to massacre victims
A philanthropic British man and his Thai wife donated 50,000 baht to support the victims of the daycare centre massacre in the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu. Joseph Nice, his Thai wife Nipaporn, and two year old child visited the help centre in the Na Klang district of Nong Bua Lamphu province yesterday to make their contribution. Nipaporn told the…
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Man shot dead near airport in northeast Thailand
A man was shot dead yesterday near an airport in northeast Thailand. The man, 40 year old Phanom Thipratanamongkol, had worked as a mobile phone businessman. He was shot on the road leading to the entrance of Khon Kaen Airport. Police found Phanom with a gold chain in one hand, and a pendant in the other. He had two bullets…
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Legendary Spain custodian causes social media storm with ‘I’m gay’ tweet
Former Spain international goalkeeper Iker Casillas caused a social media storm yesterday when he allegedly announced he is “gay” on Twitter. Casillas, who played his club football for Real Madrid and Porto tweeted… “I hope you respect me: I’m gay,” in Spanish. His former Spain colleague Carles Puyol replied on Twitter… “It’s time to tell our story.” The tweet was…
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Andaman Sea coast set for UNESCO recognition
Three conservation areas on the Andaman Sea are to be nominated for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) recognition by Natural Resources and Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa. As the islands prepare to welcome tourists on October 15, Varawut was inspecting a maintenance and waste collection project on Koh Miang of the Similan Islands in Phangnga province. Reports in…
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In the soup – wildlife trafficker extradited to US
A Malaysian man arrested for alleged wildlife trafficking has been extradited to the United States. Teo Boon Ching, 57, was put on a flight to the US at Suvarnabhumi airport on Friday night. The suspect, wanted on a warrant issued by the Criminal Court for colluding in wildlife trafficking and money laundering, was arrested at a Bangkok hotel on June…
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CNN to be prosecuted for invasive daycare massacre coverage
[UPDATE: Thai news source CatDumb Has reported on Facebook that police have now taken two reporters and a photographer from CNN immigration to have their visas revoked. It was suggested that they did not have the correct type of paperwork and were using a tourist visa instead of a work visa. At any rate, police informed the Immigration Department about…
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Gun laws in Thailand to be discussed by House committee
An upcoming meeting of the House Committee on Police Affairs will address gun control measures in the wake of the daycare centre massacre just days ago. The vice chairman of the committee who serves as the deputy secretary-general of the Democrat Party announced plans to consider several actions to allow more responsible gun ownership in Thailand. One idea on the…
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Myanmar border monastery destroyed in air raid
A monastery in the Karen State village of Mekatha was turned to rubble in an attack by fighter jets on October 6. Airstrikes by the Myanmar air forces on Thursday destroyed the monastery and several houses in a village near the border with Thailand. The attack on the village began at around 2.30am and lasted about half an hour. At…
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Armed, drunk father tried to snatch his child from school
One day after a former police officer killed his wife and child and slaughtered 24 children and 13 others at a daycare centre in Nong Bua Lamphu, another man was stopped and arrested before he could commit a similar act. In the Southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat, an inebriated armed man was arrested near a school trying to grab…
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Man accidentally crushes 2 year old daughter with tractor
An unspeakable tragedy stuck in Chon Buri, as a father driving a tractor accidentally ran over and killed his 2 year old daughter. The horrific accident happened on a farm in the Bowin district of the Eastern province on Thursday. Police responded to the accident to find the distraught 27 year old father mourning his dead little daughter. He told…
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Phuket and Chon Buri Governors enact school safety measures
Following the tragic daycare centre massacre in Nong Bua Lamphu, governors around Thailand are legislating tougher safety measures. They hope to prevent the next extreme incident before it can happen. Both Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew and Chon Buri Governor Thawatchai Srithong signed orders to put strict protocols into place. The mass shooting that spurred the governors to action took place…
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Finnish CEO detained for alleged mistreatment of 1,100 Thai berry pickers
Finnish police have arrested and detained the CEO of berry company “Polarica” under suspicion of human trafficking. CEO Jukka Kristo allegedly “deceived” 1100 Thai berry pickers and housed them in “poor conditions.” This year, Kristo’s company flew around 1100 Thais to Finland to work as berry pickers – an industry that heavily relies on a foreign workforce. The CEO has…
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Burmese junta sentences Japanese journalist for sedition and other charges
The Burmese junta sentenced a Japanese journalist for sedition violating a law on electronic communications. The media reported that Toru Kubota, a 26 year old photographer and documentary filmmaker, was arrested at a protest in the South Dagon Township in the southeastern area of Yangon on July 30. The report said he was arrested while gathering information for his documentary. The…
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Thai woman & foreign men charged for child sex trafficking in Pattaya
Police arrested a Thai woman and three foreign men for rape and sex trafficking teenagers aged under 15 years old in Pattaya. Officers from Mueng Pattaya Police Station reported yesterday that the teenagers, aged between 12 and 15, were trafficked from Beer Bar in Soi Bua Khao on September 11. According to a Police TV report, Beer Bar secretly offers…
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Love rat Thai soldier threaten’s Israeli husband of adulterous wife
An Israeli man sought help from a famous Thai lawyer after getting no satisfaction from the police after a Thai soldier threatened and fired shots at him after he discovered the soldier was having an affair with his wife. The 53 year old Israeli Rudy Bahar, his children and a lawyer, Sittra Beerbangkird, held a press conference to make the…
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No Buddhist temples willing to cremate body of daycare centre killer
No Buddhist temples are willing to cremate the body of the man who massacred 37 people, mostly young children, at a daycare centre yesterday in Nong Bua Lamphu province in northeast Thailand, according to independent Thai journalist Sorayuth Suthassanachinda. At present, the mass murderer’s body is sitting inside an ambulance as “no temples are willing to conduct religious ceremonies because…
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AI upgrade planned for pier in Phuket
A new renovation is being planned for a pier in Phuket, complete with an AI system. The Deputy Chief of the Phuket Provincial Administration (OrBorJor) said they aim to improve service and safety for tourists. The chief, Thiwat Sridokbua, said… “One of the plans is to include an AI System and add more CCTV cameras with security control rooms. Long…
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Massacre in Thailand: No drugs detected in system of daycare centre killer
It comes as a great shock that no drugs were detected in the body of the ruthless killer who massacred 37 people – including 24 children under 6 years old – yesterday at a daycare centre in Nong Bua Lamphu province in northeast Thailand. The former policeman was dismissed from the force for failing a drug test. He appeared in…
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Woman’s body in suitcase identified as Lao millionaire
UPDATE The dead woman’s body in a suitcase, which was found in the Mekong River in the Isaan province of Nakhon Phanom last week, has been identified as a Laos business owner and millionaire. Her five year old daughter and husband are also missing. Thai police tried to identify the woman from her designer clothing while her body was sent…
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More than 1 million baht payout to massacre victims
The families of the adult victims of the daycare centre massacre in the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu will receive up to 1 million baht in compensation. Kom Chad Luek news agency reported the Rights and Liberties Protection Department under the Ministry of Justice is investigating the loss from the Nong Bua Lamphu massacre and will offer compensation to…
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Four children survive daycare centre massacre in northeast Thailand
Despite widespread coverage in Thai media that only one child survived the brutal massacre at a daycare centre in Nong Bua Lamphu in northeast Thailand yesterday, reports identify four child survivors of the gun and knife rampage. Yesterday, a former policeman killed 37 people in total including 24 children under six years old while they were taking an afternoon nap…
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