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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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Malaysian bill seeks expanded protection against stalking
The issue of stalking has become a major concern in Malaysia, and the government has taken several steps to address it. The draft of two bills related to stalking has undergone several improvements to ensure that all aspects of legislation related to stalking are comprehensively covered. Stalking can have a severe impact on the lives of victims, particularly women, and…
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Police officer accidentally shoots colleague at Bangkok police station
A police officer accidentally shot and injured his colleague during a training session at Huay Kwang Police Station in Bangkok yesterday. The deputy superintendent of the station, Kritthin Phacharathanaboon, spoke to the media today to calm public concerns that the shooting was not a result of a disagreement between the two officers. Krittin said the shooting was an accident that…
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Thai cops go above and beyond to help Chinese tourist return home
Good eggs from the Royal Thai Police force in Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand, helped a Chinese tourist get her passport back in the nick of time before her flight back to China last night. At 10pm, officers at Chang Phuak Police Station received a call from a distressed Chinese tourist. The tourist rented a car from a car rental…
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Police rescue two sex trafficked Thai women from Hong Kong flat
Police came to the rescue of two Thai women imprisoned in a Hong Kong flat after falling prey to a sex trafficking scheme. The women, aged 38 and 47 and worked as masseurs, were trapped in a Yau Ma Tei flat in Temple Street after they refused to engage in sex work. A 50 year old Hong Kong woman was…
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Nok Air slammed for ill treatment of a disabled passenger
A Thai man slammed Nok Air airline for the appalling treatment of his disabled father that descended into a farcical game of musical chairs. The man revealed on TikTok that he booked special seats for his parents, because his father is disabled, but was told to move to facilitate some VIP passengers. The airline denied the accusation, saying “one of…
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Elderly Thai woman survives wild elephant attack
Netizens think it’s a miracle that an elderly Thai lady survived being trampled on by a wild elephant in Prachin Buri province in eastern Thailand yesterday. The victim, 71 year old Winit On-On, aka “Grandma Winit,” was watering her eucalyptus plants at her home in Phanom Sarakham district when she bent down to pick up her hose. When Grandma Winit…
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Chinese tourists flee Pattaya pool villa blaze
Chinese tourists fled from a terrible blaze at a Pattaya pool villa last night. The fire gutted a room on the second floor of the villa, on Soi Sukhumvit 4 in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district. Five to six Chinese tourists had been staying at the villa when the blaze wreaked havoc, The Pattaya News reported. Fortunately, the tourists were…
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Thai Airways rehabilitation ahead of schedule
Thai Airways expects to exit its rehabilitation plan ahead of schedule. The airline is already looking for new aircraft as the recovery in global tourism bolsters earnings. CEO Chai Eamsiri said Thursday that the carrier will be able to leave its court-supervised debt plan “much earlier” than the late-2024 target, according to Bloomberg. The company is also in talks with…
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Anwar’s visit to Thailand brings ‘Deep South’ to top of agenda
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is due in Bangkok today to meet Thai PM Prayuth Chan-o-cha. Anwar’s visit to Thailand brings issues in the “Deep South” to the top of the diplomatic agenda. The provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, and parts of Songkhla are an important crossroads for trade between Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. China’s plans for high-speed trains from…
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Nepali man caught smuggling 5.6 kilograms of hashish into Thailand
A Nepali man was arrested at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday after customs found 5.6 kilograms of hashish hidden in his luggage with an estimated value of 560,000 baht. At 6.45pm, airport customs officials inspected a suitcase belonging to a man flying in from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu. As the unnamed Nepali national passed through with nothing to declare, customs…
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Land Transport Department will collect traffic fines
The days of blowing off traffic tickets and fines left on your car or motorbike may be coming to a close. At least if you drive legally and pay your taxes. The Royal Thai Police (RTP) and the Land Transport Department (LTD) have joined forces in a landmark agreement aimed at tackling the problem of unpaid traffic ticket fines. Under…
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Thailand to give nation’s SMEs a digital leg up
Thailand plans to give the nation’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) a digital leg up to help improve their businesses and boost the kingdom’s economy at the same time. Digital Economy and Society (DES) Minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn announced the department will include another 25 provinces in its plan to improve SME businesses, reported Bangkok Post. The “New-normal Market Transformation” initiative,…
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Thai immigration chief asks reporter, ‘Do you have a husband?’ to dodge question
In an interview about the macau888 gambling case, Thailand’s Chief of Immigration dodged a female reporter’s question by responding, “Do you have a husband?” The interview followed the interrogation of police officer Kunakorn “Bright” Khajohnboonthaworn who was accused of being one of four brothers operating the illegal gambling website macau888. According to the police force, Captain Bright proved his innocence…
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Septic tank drained in search for missing baby boy
Parents of the 8-month-old baby boy missing in Nakhon Pathom province were questioned separately by police for about nine hours Tuesday. Early in the day, the order was given for a septic tank to be drained in the search for the missing baby boy. The parents of the missing child, 16 year old Philaiporn Korcharoen and 19 year old Sittichok…
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UNICEF appeals to Thai public to help child victims of earthquakes in Turkey and Syria
The recent earthquakes in the border region of Syria and Turkey have caused widespread devastation, leaving thousands of people dead and many more injured. Among those affected are countless children and their families, who are now in dire need of assistance. In response, UNICEF Thailand has launched an emergency appeal to the Thai public, calling for people to help provide…
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Plant-based Thai food tours NSW
“My message on plant-based Thai food is simple – if you can, try to incorporate more vegetables in your weekly routine, because it will change your life.” Thomas Thong and his wife run a food stall serving contemporary, plant-based Thai food. The stall travels throughout Australia’s New South Wales regularly. Thong’s parents lived in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge and…
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Mitsubishi SpaceJet grounded to a halt
Japan has finally admitted that building the Mitsubishi SpaceJet, the nation’s first passenger aircraft, was not a good idea. The project appears to have been grounded forever. Japan abandoned plans to build its first passenger jet after years of technology setbacks and costs running out of control. According to the Guardian, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will cancel the public-private SpaceJet partnership,…
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Tarmacked forest in Thai conservation area sparks outrage
Netizens are scratching their heads at the Department of National Park‘s decision to tarmac a forest inside a conservation area at a wildlife sanctuary in Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand. No space at all was left around the tree trunks to allow the trees to breathe and grow. An outraged Facebook user posted a picture of the newly tarmacked…
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Khaosan Road businesses told to cut noise pollution, or else!
Businesses in the backpacker haven of Khaosan Road have been warned to cut noise pollution otherwise, they will suffer legal consequences, due to complaints received from nearby residents. City Hall says businesses have 15 days to get their houses in order and regulate noise levels, or else! After a gathering that brought together 30 members of the Khaosan Road Business…
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Ministry of Culture to promote 16 Thai festivals internationally
Thailand’s Ministry of Culture is taking steps to promote the country’s cultural heritage and boost local economies by promoting 16 Thai festivals internationally. Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Yupha Taweewattanakitborvon, announced the move as part of the government’s “5F” initiative, which seeks to promote Thai soft power through the food, film, fashion, fighting, and festival industries. The selected festivals represent…
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Drunk police officer crashes car into restaurant in Bangkok, 3 in ICU (video)
Three people are seriously injured in intensive care after a drunk police officer crashed his car into a restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand, on Monday night. The owner of the “Mala” (Chinese spicy hotpot) restaurant in Bang Khen district said they are scared justice will not be served because the drunk driver is a police officer. At 10.55pm on Monday, officers…
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Two children killed in Canada after bus driver rams into daycare centre
Two children were killed near Montreal, Canada after a bus driver rammed into a daycare centre. Police arrested the driver after suspecting him of deliberately causing the accident. One child reportedly died at the scene and another while in the ambulance. Several children were trapped under the bus when it slammed into the building in the suburb of Laval at…
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PLTO focuses on foreigners using rental cars as illegal taxis
The crackdown on illegal taxis – those operating outside their jurisdiction or without proper licenses or permissions – continues in Phuket. Authorities have turned their attention to a new target: foreigners using personal rental cars as taxis. In response to numerous complaints, Phuket officials launched an investigation into reports of foreign tourists acting as illegal taxi drivers. A joint team…
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Family of 5, including 3-month-old baby, brutally murdered in northern Thailand
Police are investigating the brutal murder of five members of an indigenous Hmong family in the northern province of Tak. The culprit behind the crime remains at large. The youngest victim was a mere three months old. The community leader of Baan Sirirak in the Wang Chao district of Tak promptly informed the police after making the grim discovery of…
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Suspect in US hit-and-run fatal accident flees to Thailand
A US woman suspected in a deadly hit-and-run has reportedly fled to Thailand. The FBI says the woman, Tubtim “Sue” Howson, from Oakland Township, Michigan is suspected of hitting and killing a 22 year old man on New Year’s Day. According to WXYZ, the FBI filed a criminal complaint alleging that the 57 year old fled to Thailand two days…
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Japanese photographer revives Bangkok nostalgia with film pics
Photographs of Bangkok from the past, captured by Japanese photographer Doi Kuro, have gone viral on Thai social media in response to the return of the Y2K fashion. The images have evoked a sense of nostalgia for those who recall the good old days. The Y2K (Year 2 Kilo) or Year 2000 fashion trend is sweeping across Thailand and teenagers…
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Authorities investigate mass haircut punishment at northern Thailand school
Thai authorities are investigating after a video surfaced on social media showing a school teacher in the northern Phetchabun province cutting the hair of over 100 students on Tuesday as punishment for violating haircut rules. Education Minister Trinuch Thienthong ordered state agencies to investigate the school director and teacher involved in the incident. Trinuch said the behaviour of the teacher…
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500k baht stolen from Singaporean family in Phuket villa
A Singaporean family’s vacation in Phuket was spoiled after their villa was burgled of over 485,000 baht worth of valuables, including two Louis Vuitton crossbody bags. The family of eight were visiting the beach destination from January 22 to 29 and were robbed at the tail end of their holiday. They had moved into a private seven-bedroom villa they booked…
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Wild boar creates chaos in Pattaya, still on the loose
A wild boar created chaos in Pattaya yesterday, attracting widespread attention on social media. The massive animal, estimated to weigh between 200-300 kilograms, was spotted roaming around the city at 7.30pm on February 7. The beast was also seen swaggering around Big C Extra in central Pattaya as if it owned the joint. Despite the best efforts of Sawang Boriboon…
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Swedish ‘plogging’ trend reaches Koh Lanta, Thailand
Koh Lanta – an island along Thailand‘s Andaman coast – saw its first ever plogging event last week, according to the Embassy of Sweden in Bangkok. There’s nothing worse than a beautiful landscape spoiled by plastic waste and debris. A movement in Sweden has come up with a solution. ‘Plogging’ is an activity that combines jogging with picking up litter.…
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