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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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48 ‘restaurant’ goers test positive for drugs in Northeast Thailand
48 ‘restaurant’ goers tested positive for drugs in Khon Khaen province in Thailand’s Northeast in the early hours of this morning. Police found 62 customers in the restaurant. Apart from food, they found alcoholic drinks and packets of crystal methamphetamine on the tables. Empty packets were found in trash cans. Officers from Ban Pet police station had been tipped off …
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Russian tourism staff claims interest in Thailand travel has spiked for Russians
More Russians are reportedly interested in venturing down to Thailand. After Russia announced earlier this week it would lift Covid-19 restrictions on flights to 52 countries, starting April 9, some Russian tourism staff claim there was a massive increase in Thailand search inquiries by Russians. Searches for tickets to Thailand reportedly went up by 20%, according to one popular vacation…
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Diver found off Malaysia says his teenage son died while they were adrift
One of the four missing divers who has now been found off Malaysia yesterday told the Malaysian coastguard his son, a 14 year old boy, died while they were adrift. The man, 46 year old Adrian Chesters, said his teenage son Nathen Chesters had become too weak to survive. A statement by the coastguard cited Adrian… “…as a result of…
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Independent candidate leads Bangkok’s race for a new Governor
An independent candidate is leading the record pack of 31 running in the forthcoming election for Bangkok’s Governor. In Bangkok’s first Governor election in 9 years, Chadchart Sittipunt, a former Pheu Thai heavyweight, is favoured by 38.8% of 1,362 eligible voters polled in the Bangkok area. The poll was conducted from April 5-7. The runner up at the moment is…
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Pakistan’s Imran Khan ousted from PM position
Following a parliamentary vote of no confidence last week, Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan has been ousted. The vote came after Pakistan’s opposition parties accused Khan of economic mismanagement, as well as poor governance. The country’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that a decision to block the no confidence vote was unconstitutional. Now, Khan claims that opposition to him is backed…
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Post-Omicron, Asian economies accelerate into recovery mode
Across most of South East and Eastern Asia, Covid is now on a sharp retreat, some 2 – 3 months after similar surges and drops in the US, UK and Europe. Except for 3 countries, Japan, China and Thailand, where the daily numbers, fuelled by Omicron variants, are still climbing. These same 3 countries have been among the most risk-averse…
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Man shoots and kills hospital patient in Thailand’s Northeast
A man shot and killed a hospital patient in Pak Khat district of Bueng Kan province in Thailand’s Northeast yesterday. Police arrested the 21 year old shooter, and he remains in custody during the investigation. A video posted on social media shows an armed man in a blue T-shirt, entering the hospital’s emergency room. The man is then seen shooting…
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Phuket’s Vanderbilt Estate opens for local charity
The financial impact of Covid has been felt all around the world, with charities hit the hardest. Phuket Has Been Good To Us, who teach English for free to disadvantaged Thai children, is no exception. Desperately in need of funds, they were hugely thankful when friends of the Foundation Mohan Murjani and Sukanya Panyalert (Khun Yui) offered to open the…
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Will Smith has been ‘slapped’ a 10 year ban from attending the Oscars
Will Smith has been banned from attending the Academy Awards for the next 10 years, following his spontaneous slapping of comedian host Chris Rock on stage during this year’s Oscars. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences announced its decision in a statement yesterday in Beverly Hills, California… “The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from…
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Airlines launching direct flights from Phuket to northeast Thailand, and Singapore
Slowly, gradually, but palpably, airlines are starting to increase their frequency and routes again. Not Air is launching direct flights to Phuket from Northeastern Thailand (and visa versa), and Air Asia is adding flight from Phuket to Singapore, starting next Tuesday. Yesterday morning, a Nok Air flight landed in Phuket, marking the new plan for one direct flight per week…
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Songkran, and traffic, are in the air as Bangkok dwellers head ‘upcountry’
The spirit of Songkran is in Thailand’s air, as is heavy traffic, as Bangkok residents make road trips ‘upcountry’ to the Northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima and beyond. Motorway 6, or M6, in Pak Chong district, is not yet open to public travel. It will be open to drivers for two periods: April 11 to 14, and after Songkran from…
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Missile attack on train station kills 52 Ukrainians, Russia denies involvement
Six weeks after Russia first invaded Ukraine, a missile struck a train station in the Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk yesterday, killing 52 people. Russia denies being behind the attack, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the bombing had been reported in Russia before the missiles had even landed. Zelensky said the attack showed “evil with no limits”. Zelensky called for…
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2 more missing divers found off Malaysia, 3 out of 4 now found
Two more of the four divers who went missing off southeastern Malaysia this week have been found safe today. The first of the divers found, a 35 year old Norwegian woman, was rescued on Thursday. The two divers found today are 18 year old Alexia Molina, from France, and 46 year old Adrian Chesters, from the UK. Malaysian fishermen spotted…
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Smuggled sketches show horrific conditions inside notorious Insein Prison in Myanmar
Radio Free Asia have released a series of sketches penned by inmates of a Burmese prison in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, and smuggled out of the prison by brave, released detainees. Thousands of mostly political prisoners have been sent there since last year’s coup. The following from Radio Free Asia… “Sketches smuggled out of Myanmar’s notorious Insein Prison…
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Phuket Soi Dog volunteer to brave Himalayas to raise money for foundation
A volunteer from Soi Dog Foundation in Phuket plans to brave a trek through the rugged Himalayan mountains to raise money for the foundation. The volunteer, 51 year old Yanisa, wants to reach the summit of the 6,419-metre Mount Chulu West with her husband in 21 days. Yanisa and her husband, 65 year old Rohun, will start from Kathmandu in…
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Chon Buri locals find baby crocodile in their kitchen
A croc in the kitchen! Locals in Sri Racha district of Chon Buri province were horrified to find a crocodile roaming through their kitchen this week. The house owners, who requested not to be named, say they have no idea where the crocodile came from, and that they’ve never heard of crocodiles dwelling in the local area. The owners called…
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Starting in May, foreign arrivals to Thailand may only have to take ATK tests
Starting in May, foreign arrivals to Thailand may take antigen tests on arrival, instead of PCR tests. Thailand’s CCSA announced yesterday that it will hold off on adjusting the current entry restrictions for foreign travellers to Thailand until it can evaluate the effects of next week’s Songkran festival, as it continues monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in the country. Thailand’s…
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Thai woman gives birth in pickup truck, after Chon Buri hospital turned her away
A Thai woman gave birth inside a pickup truck near the Ban Ang Wien intersection in eastern Thailand’s Chon Buri province yesterday. The woman’s husband had driven her to the hospital in the morning, but the doctor told her to go home as her cervix had not yet dilated enough. In the afternoon, the woman experienced more pain and decided…
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Phuket man confesses to spying on female hotel guest, still ‘temporarily released’
A Phuket hotel employee has confessed this morning to spying on a hotel guest last night while she was showering. Phuket police have already released the man, Noppadon, even though he admitted his crime and had been charged by police. The guest, Tong, posted on Facebook last night about the man, saying she spotted him staring at her through the…
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Crane arm breaks at Bangkok construction site, 1 man killed, another injured
Yesterday afternoon, a crane arm broke and dropped at a construction site on Ratchadamri Road in the Lumphini area of Bangkok’s Pathumwan district, killing one and injuring another. Part of the 20 metre tall crane broke off and landed on the ground. Two workers were seriously injured, both of them from Myanmar. They were rushed to a local hospital, where…
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Boeing 757-200 crash lands and splits in two at Costa Rica airport
Boeing’s series of bad media, whether directly at fault or not, continues after a DHL Boeing 757-200 cargo aircraft crash landed and split into two, losing its tail end at Costa Rica’s Juan Santamaria international airport yesterday. The crew managed to escape the yellow DHL cargo plane and came out of the incident unharmed. The aircraft was bound for Guatemala…
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Songkran: Academics predict 10 year low in festival spending this year
Thailand academics predict the public’s spending during next week’s Songkran holiday will be the lowest in 10 years. An associate professor at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce said he expects people to spend around 106 billion baht altogether across Thailand this year. This will be 5.4% less than last year, when public spending was recorded at about…
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Asia News Today | New North Korean test on the way & META blocks Filipino election account
Human Rights Watch has accused Australia’s ambassador to Myanmar of “lending credibility” to Myanmar’s military government. HRW’s criticism came after the ambassador met with the Burmese military chief and Myanmar’s state-owned media outlets on Wednesday to discuss “cooperation” in various sectors.HRW Myanmar researcher Manny Maung says the meeting has hurt global efforts to hold the chief accountable for human rights…
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US arrests 3 Thais, yakuza chief for planning to supply missiles to Burmese rebels
US authorities revealed yesterday that they have arrested three Thai men and a Japanese yakuza organised crime leader in New York City on April 4 – 5. The men are accused of trafficking heroin and methamphetamine, as well as attempting to acquire surface-to-air missiles for rebel groups in Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Takeshi Ebizawa, Sompak Raksaranee, Somphop Sigsiri and Suksan…
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Phuket hospital and resort launch ‘Prestige Wellness’ tourism campaign
A Phuket hospital and a local resort are teaming up to launch a new campaign called “Prestige Wellness” — offering tourists ‘reboot’ wellness programs, in addition to Phuket’s natural beauty, local cuisine and cultural activities. Now tourists won’t even have to leave the comfort of their hotel to benefit from some of the wellness programmes available under the government’s plan for…
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CCSA delays easing entry restrictions to Thailand… until after Songkran festival
The CCSA has announced today that they will hold off on adjusting the current entry restrictions for foreign travellers to Thailand until after next week’s Songkran festival, as they continue monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in the country. After today’s meeting, CCSA officials said they plan to adjust their measures in May, depending on the Covid situation after Thai New…
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Friday Covid Update: 25,140 new cases; provincial totals
89 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 25,877 with 4,179 of those fatalities since the start of this year. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 25,140 new Covid-19 cases and 24,854 recoveries. There are now 248,254 people in Thailand being treated for Covid-19. Out of…
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Malaysian Airlines 737 plunges mid-air, passengers ‘float’ in their seats
Malaysia Airlines has responded to questions over an ‘incident’ with one of their Boeing 737 aircraft last Sunday, commenting that “the plane performed an air turn back due to technical issues with the aircraft, compounded by bad weather en route”. Those “issues” caused MH2664, flying from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Sabah on the eastern island of Borneo, to plunge…
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King of Saudi Arabia donates 7 tonnes of dates to Thailand Muslims
The King of Saudi Arabia has bestowed 7 tonnes of dates and gift boxes to Thai Muslims who are fasting during the holy month of Ramadan from April 2 – May 1. King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud’s gift of 3,000 boxes of dates will be distributed to Muslim communities in Thailand to eat at iftar, which is the meal…
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BMC candidate reveals transparent ads to reduce car accidents, netizens disagree
One inventive candidate for the Bangkok Metropolitan Council has come up with a new design for campaign ads, saying his transparent banners would reduce car accidents. The candidate said such banners would not block the visibility of drivers, as they can see through the clear plastic material, unlike traditional banners. However, Thai netizens, who have been keen on clearing the…
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