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.
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Sponsored Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand
Moving to Thailand offers a prospect full of excitement and adventure, but in the same vein, if any injuries were to occur (and god forbid it does), the local healthcare system can be confusing at first glance for many expats...
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Motorbike dumped in pond mystifies park-goers
PHUKET: Police and local residents are scratching their heads over a motorcycle found dumped in a pond at Rama IX Park (King’s Park) in Phuket Town (map here) yesterday morning. The abandoned bike – apparently in good condition – was first noticed by park users doing their morning exercises. “The bike, with a Ratchaburi license plate, Kor Mor Ror 407,…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Iran to swear off nuclear; Mexico storm looting spree; Heartbroken mom of DC shooter apologizes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rouhani says Iran willing to forswear nuclear arms Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani vowed on Wednesday that his government would never develop nuclear weapons, his strongest signal yet that he may be seeking a diplomatic thaw with the West after decades of acrimony.In an…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Swede bombmaker jailed; Rubber hoarders warned; House set for Bt2tn row; Same-sex marriage advances
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Bomb-making material earns Swedish man jail term The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Bangkok’s Ratchadaphisek Criminal Court yesterday sentenced a Swedish man of Lebanese descent to two years and eight months in jail for possessing without permission almost three tonnes of ammonium nitrate, which could be used for…
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Monk with Phuket mistress exposed by viral videos
PHUKET: The Buddhist monk exposed by two sensational videos last night – in which he was pictured naked with his Phuket mistress, who already has a husband – has left the monkhood. Phra Kru Boonyapinant, the former abbot of Wat Pamok in Kapong, Phang Nga, hung up his robes early this morning. “Ajarn Reet gave no reason for his behavior,”…
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World News: US Navy was warned; France, Russia squabble; Mexico’s Acapulco in chaos
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. Navy was warned that Washington shooter ‘heard voices’ Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Rhode Island police warned the U.S. Navy last month that Washington Navy Yard gunman Aaron Alexis had reported “hearing voices,” raising further questions about how he gained security clearance at the complex where he…
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Thailand News: Asean not ready – yet; Cig warnings; Special law for rubber protests; Kingdom told to prep for old age
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Asean is not yet ready for integration, Mahathir says The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Singapore is the only Asean member that will be completely ready for economic integration under the Asean Economic Community (AEC) by 2015, and some of the group’s poorer members should be allowed to…
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Russian body found off Patong Beach
PHUKET: Beach guards recovered the body of a Russian man at Patong Beach late this morning.The body of Tsymbalyuk Alexey, 45, was brought back to shore at about 11am. Police suspect that he died about three hours earlier.“He was only wearing black trunks when he was found, he might have gone swimming alone, as nobody witnessed him drowning,” said Teerasak…
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Million-baht blaze ravages Phuket air-conditioner store
PHUKET: Police believe a short-circuit started a fire that caused a million baht in damage at an air-conditioning store in northern Phuket this morning. The fire was reported at 8:30am by 25-year-old shop owner Panida Mekthavornsawat, who arrived to open her New Kee Equipment store only to find smoke billowing out from the roof. The store, located about 500 meters…
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Phuket Tourist Court to open next Tuesday
PHUKET: Phuket’s Tourist Court is set to open on September 24 with a budget of 1.5 million baht. Phuket’s tourist court is the second such court to open in Thailand; the first opened in Pattaya on September 5. Five more courts will open across the country by year’s end, said Sitthisak Wanachakij, spokesman for the Court of Justice. The opening…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Police crack down in Nakhon Si Thammarat; Ghost trains due to repairs; Bangkok Gov wants fire engine deal extinguished
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police crack down on rubber protest The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: More than 10 vehicles were smashed and set ablaze and people injured when clashes broke out between hundreds of rubber growers and security officials at the Kuan Nong Hong Intersection in Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Cha-uat district…
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Phuket dengue numbers critical, says public health chief
PHUKET: The chief of Phuket’s Public Health Office has admitted that the “333” anti-dengue campaign launched in April (story here) has failed and called for support to re-apply the program with more manpower after dengue cases in Phuket reached their highest number in 26 years. “Everyone needs to be concerned about this,” Dr Bancha Kakhong told a meeting held yesterday…
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Patong apartment security guard arrested on statutory rape warrant
PHUKET: Police yesterday arrested a security guard at a Patong apartment complex on an outstanding warrant for statutory rape in Samut Prakan, near Bangkok, eight years ago. Patong Police Superintendent Chiraphat Pochanaphan told the Phuket Gazette today that the man, 36, originally from Phetchabun, was wanted on an arrest warrant issued by Samut Prakan Provincial Court on July 4, 2005.…
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Phuket officials bag six kratom, dope peddlers in 24 hours
PHUKET: A Rassada village headman busted five men for possession of kratom and marijuana on Saturday – and yesterday, in concert with the Phuket Internal Security Office (PISO), arrested a man bringing kratom leaves to Phuket by bus. PISO deputy chief Thammarong Chuayaksorn and Baan Bang Chi Lao village chief Sangkom Sinthupradit, acting on a tip-off that kratom would be…
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Uninvited little cobra evicted from Chalong residence
PHUKET: When a resident of Ban Maneekram, Chalong, realized he had unwittingly hosted a visiting 40-cm cobra for the weekend, he knew what to do. “When I noticed the juvenile cobra, I immediately remembered your article headlined, ‘Snakes in the house: who you gonna call?’ (story here) and remembered you suggested calling the number of the Kusoldharn Foundation. So this…
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Phuket gold thieves out of gas, out of luck
PHUKET: Thieves attempting to cut open a safe in a locked strong room at a gold store in Patong on Saturday night most likely ran out of gas for their blowtorch, forcing them to leave empty-handed, say police. Nuchapha Jetsadaruk, the 49-year-old sister of shop owner Sasithorn Jetsadaruk, arrived to open the Yaowarat Gold Shop 9 on Sainamyen Road (map…
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Depressed man carrying a knife coaxed off highway and into hospital
PHUKET: A severely depressed man found despondently wandering along Thepkrasattri Road carrying a knife was taken into the care of Thalang Hospital on Saturday. “When we arrived, we saw the man in front of Muang Thalang School, walking on the median of Thepkrasattri Road and then into an adjacent rubber plantation. He was holding a knife in his right hand…
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Two Phuket cop-kickers caught
PHUKET: Police have arrested two of the four suspects they believe are responsible for assaulting police officers trying to make an arrest of a suspect wanted for attempted murder and other charges (story here). “I was trying to arrest Wirat ‘Kam’ Prabpet, 36, wanted for attempted murder, possession of illegal firearms and mugging,” said Cherng Talay Deputy Superintendent Sommai On-khum,…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Cambodia police unleash teargas on protesters; Assad Victory; Colorado death toll climbs; Sudan sinks in fear
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Cambodian police unleash teargas, water cannons on poll protesters Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Police fired teargas and water cannons to disperse hundreds of demonstrators who had rallied in Cambodia’s capital on Sunday to push for an independent investigation into a July election they say was fixed to…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Fears rice scheme will break budget; Taxi CCTV on the radar; Singles say no to more taxes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Fears rice scheme will break budget The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The Finance Ministry’s sub-committee assessing the cost of the rice-pledging scheme plans to finalise figures for the first year of operations next week, with or without the latest information on inventories, a ministry source said yesterday.The…
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Phuket Magic Eyes relaunch sets sights on ‘Clean Up the World’
PHUKET: A series of cleanup events are to sweep the island this September as Phuket gears up to celebrate “Clean Up the World” as part of the relaunch of the Phuket Magic Eyes Organization. The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) is joining hands with the Phuket Magic Eyes Organization and the Society Environmental Economy Knowledge (SEEK) group to take part…
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Phuket Opinion: Beauty is only skin deep – even in paradise
PHUKET: The emergence of Phuket as an important regional center for plastic surgery is great news for the local economy, but raises some important ethical concerns about elective surgeries in general. Throughout history, people – especially women – have wanted to look their best. Until very recently, however, the only certain way to achieve this came, like everything worthwhile in…
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Thief snatches 5,000 baht from 7-Eleven cash till
PHUKET: Police are searching for a snatch thief who stole 5,000 baht from a cash till at a 7-Eleven in Wichit late last night. “The store’s staffers looked very frightened when we arrived, ” said Wichit Police Superintendent Chaowalit Petchsripia. “The thief was a dark-skinned man who looked about 20-to-30 years old. He was between 1.60 and 1.65 meters tall,…
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VIDEO REPORT: Phuket police stick it to luxury-car owners
PHUKET: Police dished-out parking tickets to about a dozen luxury cars that were illegally parked along Phuket Town’s Dibuk Road yesterday afternoon. A video of the mass-ticketing of the vehicles obstructing traffic flow was posted yesterday on Youtube and has already attracted over 10,000 hits. Many viewers commented to praise Phuket police for observing the same standard for both evidently…
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Phuket trial over fatal Tiger Disco fire postponed
PHUKET: The trial of the operators of the Tiger Disco nightclub for the deaths of four people, including two tourists, in the blaze last year in Patong has been postponed until the end of November. Tiger Group CEO Piya Isaramalai and management representatives of Sara Entertainment Co Ltd were scheduled to appear in court on September 2 to face charges…
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Phuket Opinion: Providing a safe haven for abandoned pets
Dr Suchon Jittanon, 58, is a Krabi native. After earning a degree in Veterinary Medicine from Kasetsart University, he ran his own veterinary clinic in Bangkok until 1997. After that he moved to Phuket and opened another veterinary clinic, the Phuket Animal Hospital in Chalong. Here, he talks about caring for abandoned pets and urges people to think carefully before…
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Phuket tourism court on hold
PHUKET: The opening of a new tourist court in Phuket has been delayed while a sortie of judges, Tourist Police and officers from the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) complete a 14-million-baht, two-week fact-finding trip to France. The fact-finding tour, which started September 7 and is scheduled to end September 19, is aimed at giving the experts a first-hand view…
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Single lingering regret for Phuket’s top cop as he prepares to retire
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Police Commander Choti Chavalviwat is troubled by only a single lingering issue of unfinished business as he prepares for retirement at the end of this month – the much-needed high-resolution CCTVs he sought to bring to the island. Speaking to the Phuket Gazette, Maj Gen Choti lamented being unable to see the cameras fitted across the island.…
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Phuket Prison marks 113th anniversary with deity statue
PHUKET: A modest ceremony took place at Phuket Provincial Prison today to honor the installation of the Hindu God Chitragupta, who is deemed special by the Department of Corrections in Thailand. “Chitragupta is the Hindu god tasked with keeping fastidious records of all the actions of every human being. This is why he is held in high esteem by the…
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Breaking World News: Death sentences for Indian gang rapists
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Four guilty of Delhi gang rape sentenced to death Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: All four men convicted of raping and murdering a 23-year-old woman in Delhi were sentenced to death today, nine months after a crime whose savagery triggered furious protests across India and rare national debate…
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Baby buffalo saved from watery death
PHUKET: Quick action by a local Thalang villager prevented a baby buffalo from drowning in an abandoned well today. Khamsue Chanpet, 37, called Kusoldharm Rescue workers to the well behind Wat Baan Don in Thalang, after witnessing the grazing buffalo fall into the well. “I saw the buffalo walking and eating grass with the other buffaloes, and then he fell.…
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