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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Thai hospitality sector opposes dual accommodation pricing
Many hotels have voiced their opinions over the government’s proposal to adopt dual pricing in the hospitality industry. They described the plan as “impractical” and asked that the government come up with promotions and campaigns to boost tourism instead. A government spokeswoman said yesterday that hotels would be expected to adopt a dual pricing system where Thais would continue to…
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Thai schoolboy hit by bus on crossing in critical condition
A schoolboy is in critical condition after being hit by a public bus on Wednesday morning while attempting to walk over a zebra crossing in front of Rattanatibet school in Nontha Buri, in central Thailand. The 13 year old Grade 9 student named Thanandon hit his head on the road and his body slipped under the red and cream No.…
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BREAKING: CCSA address face masks, emergency decree, and foreign arrivals
Today, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha met with the Covid-19 Situation Administration – the CCSA – to discuss Covid rules and restrictions in Thailand. Namely, the use of face masks, the extension of Thailand’s emergency decree, and foreign arrival figures. The CCSA started by saying that cases of Covid subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are on the rise in Thailand. Face…
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UPDATE: Police arrest man who stabbed elderly lady to death in central Thailand
UPDATE: Police arrest man who stabbed elderly lady to death in central Thailand Police have caught and arrested the man who broke into an elderly woman’s home in Cha-am district in Phetchaburi province and stabbed her to death on Tuesday. Police arrested him in Bang Saphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province yesterday at about 3pm and took him to…
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Suvarnabhumi Airport expansion capacity up to 15 million visitors
The eastern side of Suvarnabhumi Airport’s main terminal will be modified to boost Thailand’s arrival capacity to 15 million travellers annually. The upgrades will be completed in 3 years. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Suvarnabhumi hosted 65 million passengers, international and domestic, through its arrival gates. The eastern side of the terminal will be large enough to accommodate up to…
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Free parking at Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport during July holidays
Suvarnabhumi International Airport announced that free parking will be available at its long term car park at Zone C – which can accommodate 718 vehicles – during two long holidays this month. Parking will be free for 6 days from midnight on July 12 until midnight on July 18 in celebration of Asanha Bucha day (July 13) and the beginning…
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BREAKING: Former Japan PM shot during campaign trail
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been allegedly shot during a campaign speech in Nara, western Japan, this morning. Photos of the former PM laying on the ground, with people trying to assist while removing his blood-stained shirt, appear to support the report of a shooting. The 67 year old fell to the floor holding his chest and is…
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Norwegian man drives into ravine in southern Thailand, 1 killed & 5 injured
A Norwegian man drove his car off a cliff and into a ravine at a viewpoint in Nakhon Si Thammarat province in southern Thailand yesterday. His Thai mother-in-law died from her injuries and 5 more were injured in the crash. Jorn Silva of Norwegian nationality was driving the car and inside were his wife Suwandee Silva, his daughters Natalie and…
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US cop gets extra 20 years for George Floyd’s killing
The US cop who murdered George Floyd yesterday received another 20 years in prison on top of his original sentence for violating the victim’s civil rights. Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, is already serving over 22 years after being convicted of the 46 year old’s death in May 2020 after pleading guilty to the separate federal civil rights…
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CCSA to discuss re-introduction of mask-wearing in public areas today
Thai PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha is meeting with the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today at Government House. The prime minister is also the Chairperson for Thailand’s Covid taskforce that has overseen ongoing policy since April 2020 when the country enacted the emergency decree. The emergency decree remains in force. Today’s CCSA meeting is held as Thailand copes with a levelling-off…
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Singapore executes two men for heroin trafficking
Singapore has executed two convicted drug traffickers, in what anti-capital punishment and human rights campaigners fear could be a “new wave” of hangings in the city state. The 48 year old Singaporean Norasharee bin Gous and 31 year old Malaysian national Kalwant Singh had their capital sentences carried out yesterday at the Changi Prison Complex. Their executions follow another execution…
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UPDATE: UK PM Boris Johnson’s resignation speech in full
UPDATE: Boris Johnson today resigned as Britain’s prime minister. The 58 year old gave a speech outside of 10 Downing Street at 1pm UK time. Here is the full resignation speech: “It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister, and I’ve…
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Young Frenchman dies in motorbike accident in central Thailand
A 22 year old Frenchman died in a motorbike accident this morning in Samut Prakan province in central Thailand. The man lost control of his motorbike while driving over a bridge and fell off onto a footpath, breaking his neck in the fall. At 10:30am this morning, police at Bang Bo Police Station received a report that a man had…
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Thailand: Don’t answer calls starting with +697, it’s a scam
If a number starting with +697 rings you, don’t answer. Thailand’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) says it is most likely a scam call centre trying to swindle you out of money. In a smart move to combat call centre scams, Thailand’s National Broadcasting Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has purposefully added the prefix +697 to IP calls to help people…
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Petrol prices in Bangkok reduced tomorrow
Good news for Bangkok motorists as the PTT Oil and Retail Business today announced the cost of petrol will be reduced from tomorrow (Friday) morning. The retail prices of petrol and all types of gasohol except E85 will drop by 3 baht per litre, E85 by 1.8 baht per litre, at 5am tomorrow. It’s not all good news for motorists…
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Thai student slashed in high-speed car chase after school row
A schoolgirl was slashed by a knife after the mother of a schoolboy pursued a group of teenage students down a highway following a row at her son’s sports day. The Facebook page, Let Me Know If You Want to Be Famous Return Part 3, อยากดังเดี๋ยวจัดให้ รีเทิร์น พาร์ท 3, posted a video of the high-speed car chase, which was recorded…
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UPDATE: Boris Johnson has agreed to resign as UK prime minister
UPDATE: Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon says there will be “a widespread sense of relief that the chaos of the last few days (indeed months) will come to an end” as and when Boris Johnson resigns as Conservative leader. But the SNP leader questions the sustainability of Johnson staying on until the autumn, and says he was always “manifestly unfit…
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Survey shows over 80% want legal casino complex in Thailand
A survey released by the Casino Committee of Thailand has revealed overwhelming evidence that the Thai nation wants a legal casino and entertainment complex in the country. Almost 81% of 3,296 participants said they would welcome a legal casino and entertainment complex in Thailand. MP from the Pheu Thai Party, and Casino Committee of Thailand spokesperson, Jakkapon Tangsuttitham, yesterday revealed…
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British man beaten up and robbed in Pattaya, Thailand
A British tourist who woke up in his underwear on the floor on a Pattaya path says he got beaten up and robbed by 4 Thai men after a night of heavy drinking. Police found 29 year old Farnie (surname reserved) of British nationality covered in bruises on the floor of North Pattaya Road yesterday at noon. Farnie was missing…
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‘A poll is just a poll,’ Thai PM Prayut unfazed by opposition’s popularity
Thailand will hold a general election at some point before March 2023, but polls reveal that current PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is not the favourite to win. PM Prayut says he’s not worried about the poll results, because “a poll is just a poll.” Paetongtarn Shinawatra – daughter of ousted ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra and central figure of the Pheu Thai Party…
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Grandmother stabbed more than 20 times in brutal murder in central Thailand
Police have launched a murder investigation after a man stabbed a 75 year old woman to death at her home in Phetchaburi province, central Thailand, on Tuesday. The woman’s daughter, 39 year old Yok, said she had been unwell and had been taking sleeping pills. Yok woke up at noon to find her mother – 75 year old Suthasinee Phansawat…
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Ferries to Koh Pha Ngan is costing 40% more (and the other islands too)
Business owners on Koh Pha Ngan are demanding cheaper ferry charges after they increased by more than 40% since the start of July, impacting businesses and living expenses. For the average car, the ferry service from Don Sak dock to Pha Ngan with the Raja Ferry increased from 620 baht to 900 baht as of July 1. The Raja Ferry…
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Thai MP and brother get 2 years jail for election fraud
Former Democrat Party MP Theptai Seanpong and his younger brother, Manoch Seanpong, were sentenced to a prison term of 2 years and political disqualification for 10 years after being found guilty of election fraud during the provincial administrative organization election in 2013 in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat. The Seanpong family is well-known among residents of Nakhon Si…
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2 Chinese charged with attempted murder after making a f-arse of extortion attempt
A botched 3 million baht extortion attempt by 2 Chinese nationals turned into a f-arse when one of them shot a fellow countryman in the buttock. A married Chinese couple Yu Wang and Li Min met with mainland compatriot Wang Xiaoye at a house in Muang district of Chiang Mai under the pretence of selling some antique porcelain at around…
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Thai officer caught on camera riding carelessly won’t be fined
A Thai police officer caught on camera riding a motorcycle as if he was drunk in the Isaan province of Chaiyaphum, won’t be prosecuted. The Chaiyaphum News Hunter Facebook page, คนล่าข่าวชัยภูมิ, posted a video of the police with a caption saying, “Locals sent this to me. Is it too dangerous, boss? This happened on the Bypass Road Mueng Chaiyaphum at…
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Shooter in Pattaya turns himself in after shooting at man in car
After shooting up a car where a man was waiting for his girlfriend in Pattaya, the shooter has now turned himself in at the Bang Lamung Police Station. The 38 year old man told police that the hail of bullets that he showered the car with was in response to a personal dispute and initially confessed to the crime. The…
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Bangkok authorities remove transformers belonging to lot that caused fire
Bangkok’s Metropolitan Electrical Authority yesterday removed 2 network transformers belonging to the same lot that caused a fire in Chinatown last month. The fire in the historic Sampeng market killed 2 people. The blaze was caused by a transformer exploding at a 3 storey shophouse, according to a preliminary inspection. Now, MEA officials plan to inspect the transformers to make…
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Sri Lanka PM tells bankrupt nation to prepare for ‘difficult journey’
The Sri Lanka prime minister told the nation to prepare for “a difficult and bitter journey” as he declared the country bankrupt and prepared to approach the International Monetary Fund for a loan. PM Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday declared Sri Lanka “bankrupt” before making public that he had approached the IMF to figure a way out of the nation’s worst financial…
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Phuket will have a tsunami drill on July 20 following multiple small tremors offshore
There will be a tsunami evacuation drill in Phuket’s Thalang district on July 20 after a number of underwater earthquakes off the Nicobar Islands, some 500 kilometres away, increased residents’ fears of a possible tsunami. Phuket tsunami 506 kilometres away from Thailand’s Andaman coast, the Andaman and Nicobar islands were continuously hit by 4.0 to 4.9 magnitude underwater earthquakes for three…
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Songkhla officials investigate migrant smuggling network
Officials and police in southern Thailand’s Songkhla province are investigating an illegal migrant smuggling network. On Monday, officials and immigration police set up an ambush in a forest in the Hat Yai district. Illegal Burmese migrants had been staying there. After the authorities waited through the night and into the next day, 2 pickup trucks showed up, and the migrants…
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