World News
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China opening up a boost for Thailand tourism
China yesterday announced it will reopen its borders and abandon its strict Covid-19 quarantine for travellers and mainland citizens on January 8. The announcement signals great news for Thailand as the kingdom continues to prosper from the worldwide relaxation of Covid restrictions. Chinese visitors topped the nation’s No.1 tourist charts before the pandemic outbreak in 2020. From 2014 there had…
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Mall of America shooting: one dead, five arrested
A shooting at the largest shopping centre in the United States is the latest in the unrelenting gun violence epidemic in the country. Police have now arrested five suspects in connection with a shooting inside the Mall of America, a massive shopping centre that draws tourists nationwide to Bloomington, Minnesota. The shooting occurred on Friday evening when apparently two groups…
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Hongkongers to pay 4.5 baht for plastic bags
Hongkongers are to pay HK$1 (4.5 baht, US$0.13) for each plastic bag at supermarkets from next week, according to the South China Morning Post. It’s the first increase in 13 years. Hongkongers will pay for plastic bags for chilled or frozen items, but not for takeaway food or loose fresh goods. All operators, including major chains such as ParknShop and…
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Pope calls for peace in Ukraine, Russians support Putin
The head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, gave his traditional Christmas Day address in St Peter’s Square, Vatican City, Rome, which was broadcast throughout the world. The Pope used the opportunity to urge an end to the “senseless” war in Ukraine. Calling for peace is a standard message in the Pope’s Christmas address. This year he gave his address…
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Record number of Thai people travelling abroad
Most tourism discussions in Thailand centre around incoming international travellers to the kingdom. But Thai people are also travelling abroad in record numbers, the highest in three years. In the last quarter of 2022, an average of 28,000 Thai people are travelling outbound each day to other countries. That average has already climbed a bit in the first 20 days…
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Tesco slavery case – Thai police raid ‘sweatshop’
Thai police have raided the former Tesco supplier at centre of a slavery claims by Burmese workers. The VK Garment (VKG) factory in Mae Sot is subject of a UK lawsuit against the supermarket chain from 130 ex-workers who claim they were trafficked, raped and abused. Thai police and labour officials inspected conditions and interviewed employees at the factory over…
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Codeshare deal between Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways
A strategic partnership expansion was just signed between Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways. The two airlines have had a partnership for years, as both are members of the Star Alliance network, but the new deal will allow them to codeshare more flights to offer each of their customers more variety when travelling in Southeast Asia and the world. Codesharing is…
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UN urges Asian countries to save starving Rohingyas adrift at sea
The UN is calling on Asian countries to save almost 200 starving Rohingya refugees adrift at sea. The group of desperate Rohingyas has been adrift in the Indian ocean for the past month. The boat’s exact location is unclear. But as of Wednesday, the boat was near the Indian territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of…
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Self-proclaimed inventor of iconic chicken tikka masala cuisine dies at 77
The self-proclaimed inventor of the iconic chicken tikka masala dish has died at the age of 77. The Glasgow chef, Ahmed Aslam Ali, previously claimed that he invented the dish by creating the sauce from a can of tomato soup. He owned a restaurant called Shish Mahal in the 1970s, which his nephew says, became his life. “He would eat…
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Small but mighty group of Afghan women take to the streets over university ban
A small but mighty group of Afghan women took to the streets to protest against the Taliban’s ban on university education for women. The latest move to restrict human rights for women in the country saw the Taliban’s minister for higher education ordering all private and public universities to bar women from enrolling and attending. According to the Straits Times,…
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‘Rescued’ scammers return home from Cambodia
The group of seven ‘rescued’ scammers who returned home from Cambodia had begged, live on air, to be rescued from a different set of scammers – this time Cambodian / Chinese. The two men and five women crossed the border in Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district on Tuesday evening, escorted by Thai embassy staff and Cambodian security officials. Only four had…
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UN Security Council adopts long-awaited resolution on Myanmar crisis
The United Nations Security Council has adopted a long-awaited resolution to the crisis in Myanmar. The Council called for Myanmar’s junta to release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a famous political prisoner whose democratically-elected party was ousted from power by the military in February 2021. The 15-member council has been divided on the situation in Myanmar for decades and has…
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Iranian footballer mimes hanging gesture to protest executions
Another Iranian footballer is courageously sounding the alarm on Iran’s executions of protesters. Rather than celebrating his goal, the football player, Meysam Tohidast, mimed a gesture of hanging himself after scoring at the Tehran Derby, to protest the executions. Iran International English yesterday tweeted video footage of Tohidast putting one hand around his neck, while making a fist above his…
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Ukraine’s Zelenskiy appeals to US Republican lawmakers for additional aid in Congressional speech
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is appealing to US Republican lawmakers for additional aid during his speech to the US Congress. Zelenskiy made his first trip abroad since Russia invaded Ukraine with Ukrainian Americans offering support upon his arrival at the US Capitol. “It is a great honour for me to be at the US Congress and speak to you and…
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Thailand ranked 4th least corrupt country in Asia
Thailand – a nation run by a semi-elected military government – was ranked 35th in the world and 4th in Asia in the U.S. News‘ “Least Corrupt Countries” list. Yesterday, American media company U.S. News released its annual “Best Countries” ranking, featuring 73 countries all over the world. Data was collected from a worldwide survey with more than 17,000 participants.…
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Zelenskiy’s US visit gives Ukrainian Americans hope
President Zelenskiy’s visit to the US is giving Ukrainian Americans hope that the US will assist Ukraine further against the Russian invasion. Dozens of pro-Ukrainian activists gathered near the White House to support Zelenskiy as he made his first trip abroad since the war started. The group called “US Ukrainian Activists” then met at the US Capitol to hear Zelenskiy’s…
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New artefacts in the Cave of Salome, nurse to Jesus
New light has been shed on just how long a cave in Israel has been held as a religious holy site. The cave is believed to be the burial place of Salome, the apocryphal nurse to the newborn baby Jesus. After a recent excavation, new evidence has reinforced the long-held belief that the biblical figure is in fact buried there. Excavations…
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97 year old former Nazi concentration camp secretary found guilty of over 10,000 murders
A 97 year old woman has been convicted of murdering over 10,000 people while she served as a Nazi concentration camp secretary. The woman was convicted for her role in what could be the last trial for World War II crimes. According to Reuters, the district court in the northern town of Itzehoe charged Irmgard Furchner with a two-year suspended…
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No more university education for women under Taliban-ruled Afghanistan
The Taliban is continuing its relentless campaign to chip away at women’s rights in Afghanistan. Yesterday, the terror group banned women from universities. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Higher Education said the move was to go into effect immediately. Afghan women are now mourning the loss of education, which was a lifeline for many under Afghanistan’s deeply patriarchal society. One university student…
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California earthquake leaves tens of thousands without electricity, 2 deaths
A California earthquake with a 6.4 magnitude has left tens of thousands without electricity and has reportedly taken two lives. The earthquake occurred before dawn on Tuesday, damaging roads, water systems and homes. At least 11 were reported injured as well as two deaths from “medical emergencies.” The quake struck at 2:30am PST and was followed by around 80 aftershocks.…
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Floods hit Malaysia hard, tens of thousands displaced
Floods are hitting Malaysia hard leaving tens of thousands of people displaced. As of last night, 45,000 victims had been evacuated to relief centres in five states in Malaysia’s peninsula. The state of Terengganu was hit the hardest, with 29,717 victims from 8,214 families evacuated. The district most impacted in Terengganu was Kemaman, with 8,375 victims from 2,109 families evacuated. There…
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Trafficking rears ugly head again after group of Thais escapes slavery in Cambodia
Southeast Asia’s trafficking problem is rearing its ugly head again, after a group of Thais managed to escape slavery for a Chinese call centre gang in Cambodia today. The call centre is located in the border town of Krong Bavet. The group of seven Thais posted a Facebook Live video asking for help early this morning. A woman said they…
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Twitter poll respondents tell Musk to step down, so he changes rules
Elon Musk’s Twitter has been the definition of a hot mess. After the latest round of controversies, Musk – now fallen to the world’s second richest man – launched a poll asking if he should step down. When the poll didn’t go the way he planned (or did it?!), he changed the rules of who could participate in future polls.…
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Gunman kills 5 in condo shooting near Toronto
A gunman killed five people in a shooting at a condominium near Toronto, Canada. The gunman, 73 year old Francesco Velli, fatally shot five people before police killed him. The incident happened in the city of Vaughan on Sunday night. The five people who Velli brutally killed include three men and two women. Velli also injured a 66 year old…
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China releases first Covid fatality rates after loosening restrictions
China is reporting its first fatality rates after the recent loosening of Covid restrictions. According to CNBC, three people died over the weekend after contracting Covid-19 marking the first fatalities since the last report in May. All three were aged 87 to 91 and lived in Beijing. Last Sunday alone, Beijing reported more than 26,000 infections, both symptomatic and asymptomatic.…
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The UN reaches historic biodiversity agreement to protect one-third of planet by 2030
The United Nations has reached a historic biodiversity agreement that will aim to protect one-third of the planet by 2030. The landmark deal is aimed at safeguarding diversity by protecting vital ecosystems such as wetlands and rainforests and indigenous peoples’ rights. The agreement came at the COP15 UN biodiversity summit in Montreal, Canada. Previously the summit was set to be…
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Ukraine’s Zelenskiy requests weapons systems from Western leaders
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy is asking Western leaders for a wide range of weapons systems to assist the country in its fight against Russia’s invasion. According to Thai PBS World, he asked leaders of countries in the Joint Expeditionary Force, including British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, to meet in Latvia to discuss his request for assistance. “I ask you to…
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Fierce snowstorm pounds Japan, disrupts public transport
A fierce snowstorm is pounding Japan after starting its wrath on the Sea of Japan coast one day ago, disrupting public transportation. The snowfall caused five trains on the Yamagata Shinkansen line to be suspended due to fallen trees and pantograph problems. The line runs between Tokyo and the northeast city of Shinjo. Meanwhile, one train from Tokyo to Yamagata…
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Animal activists call for ban on US monkey imports
Animal activists are calling on the US government to ban imports of primates for laboratory use after a government report revealed that deadly pathogens entered the country through imported monkeys from Cambodia. The report detailed that between 2018-2021, six cases of Burkholderia pseudomallei were identified in such imported primates from Cambodia. The rare but deadly disease has a mortality rate…
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ASEAN members to allegedly hold non-official meeting on Myanmar situation
ASEAN members are allegedly being invited to join an open-ended consultative meeting concerning the situation in Myanmar on December 22. Thailand is allegedly hosting the meeting, according to an anonymous source for Teak Door. The source says the meeting is not an official ASEAN meeting, but rather an initiative to update and exchange views informally among colleagues interested in and…
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