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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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No New Year’s Eve cheer from Deep South insurgents
New Year’s Eve sparked may have sparked hundreds of thousands of celebrations throughout the kingdom last night but festive cheer was in short supply as insurgency continued its reign of terror in the Deep South. Police reported several incidents last night intended to create a disturbance in four districts of the southern border province of Pattani last night. The incidents,…
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Songkhla lifeguard dies in search for missing girl
A Songkhla lifeguard died on the way to hospital after losing consciousness while taking part in the search for a 10-year-old girl who went missing off Songkhla beach yesterday. A team of Songkhla lifeguards were dispatched to Chalathat beach, a popular tourist spot, after being alerted at about 2pm that a 10-year-old girl had gone missing. They were joined in…
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Mixed blessings in Thailand’s holiday road carnage
Thailand’s annual New Year holiday road carnage has seen 85 deaths in two days, but there were mixed blessings in a Bangkok temple, as a meritless BMW added to the grim statistics. The death toll in road accidents during the first two days of the new year holiday, traditionally a time when Thai people go home to meet their families,…
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Parliament president predicts dissolution of House of Representatives
The Thai Parliament president predicts the House of Representatives will be dissolved before the MPs’ four-year term ends on March 23. Parliament president Chuan Leekpai said last night that the dissolution could take place either during or after the current ordinary session but before the MPs’ time in office expires. The current parliament session lasts until February 28. If the…
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World’s revellers throng to New Year’s Eve parties
Free from many of their Covid worries, the world’s revellers thronged to New Year’s Eve parties, with Pacific nations of Kiribati, Tonga and Samoa the first to greet the new year, one hour ahead of neighbours New Zealand. In China, celebrations took place at the Great Wall in Beijing, and in Shanghai, traffic was stopped along the Bund to allow…
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Palestine welcomes UN vote on Israel’s illegal occupation
Palestinian leaders last night welcomed a United Nations General Assembly vote insisting on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to answer the legal consequences of Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territories. The General Assembly voted 87 to 26 with 53 abstentions on the resolution, reported Aljazeera. A number of Western nations were split on the vote while the Islamic world…
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Free electric buses to Bangkok attractions from today
In a bid to boost visits to tourist attractions in Bangkok, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration created a program to run free electric buses to the floating markets on weekends, starting today. The plan was created to connect the main public transportation lines across Bangkok with nearby tourist attractions. The BMA announced yesterday the new, eco-friendly service that will feed from…
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Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Is it Kim Jung-un riding a New Year rocket?
South Korea test-fired a solid-fuel rocket yesterday triggering panic over a UFO invasion, or a possible North Korean missile launch by Kim Jung-un, riding a new year rocket into the free south. Seoul said in a statement that the launch was part of efforts to build a space-based surveillance capability and bolster its defence posture. The general public was not…
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POLL: Majority opposed to 4am venue curfew
A new poll shows that, despite vocal advocates and support amongst tourists, the majority of Thai people don’t believe that nightlife entertainment venues should be allowed to open until 4am. The poll found that 48.6% of people believe that 2am is a late enough time for bars and clubs to close. Only 40.6% of people believe that some or all…
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The Man Who Took Dinner to The Sky ft. Friso Poldervaart | Ep.18
Friso Poldervaart is a Dutch philanthropist and entrepreneur based in Bangkok. He is dedicated to helping others through his charitable endeavors, as well as running a successful business. He has a passion for making a difference in the world, and strives to use his resources to create tangible benefits for those in need. He is highly esteemed in his field…
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Thailand’s top 10 stories on social media for 2022
Social media in Thailand has had a busy year full of sensational scandals and news stories. What were the people of Thailand talking about most in 2022? Wisesight, an online analytics company used its Zocial Eye tools to analyse social media activity between January 1 and December 20 of this year in Thailand to see what got people buzzing online.…
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Thai holidays in 2023
Check your calendars! As we head into 2023, it’s handy to know about the upcoming Thai holidays for the year. Thailand has many holidays throughout 2023, though some are just general observances while others are public holidays where government offices (like immigration) and other businesses are closed. Here’s a quick snapshot of the major holidays next year. Thailand public holiday…
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37 deaths & 351 injuries reported on day 1 of Thailand’s road safety campaign
Day one of Thailand’s road safety campaign, Seven-day Dangerous (7 วัน อันตราย), does not appear to have made any difference as 37 deaths and 351 injuries were recorded. Speeding and drunk driving were the primary causes of most accidents. The road safety campaign to reduce the number of road accidents during the new year holiday began in earnest yesterday and…
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Pattaya bar security guard slaps Indian tourist in the face
A group of Indian tourists filed a complaint with Pattaya Police after a bar-restaurant security guard assaulted one of them and accused them of scamming the joint in the early hours of this morning. The Pattaya Tourist Police invited the Indian tourists to the Pattaya Police Station today, December 30, at 1am, to provide more details on the fracas. The…
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Wedding turned into a bloodbath after groomsman shoots his friend
A wedding is supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life but for one couple it will be memorable for another reason after a groomsman turned the ceremony into a bloodbath by shooting another groomsman after their girlfriends started fighting. The gunman and his girlfriend are now on the run in Trang, southern Thailand An officer from…
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Tesco slavery case – police interview 100s of Mae Sot workers
Police and labour officials in Mae Sot are interviewing more than 100 workers from the former supermarket supplier in the Tesco slavery case. Authorities are gathering information as they follow up on last week’s raid led by deputy national police chief Gen Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn at the VK Garment (VKG) factory in the border town of Tak province. The…
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Thai Airways rehab plan soars ahead of schedule
The embattled Thai flag carrier has sold at least eight aircraft and other non-core assets since October, as part of Thai Airways‘ rehab plan. Thai Airways International updated its ongoing bankruptcy rehabilitation to the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET). THAI, whose subsidiary – Thai Smile, made global headlines yesterday after a mid-air brawl captured on video went viral– said in…
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Woman who tried to murder her aunty is hospitalised after hit-and-run incident
A woman hospitalised after a hit-and-run incident was fleeing the scene of an alleged murder attempt, her victim claims. Netizens said was karma. The woman was hit by a car in the northern province of Nan only moments after she tried to kill her aunty to escape paying back a 1 million-baht debt. A witness startled the potential murderer while…
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Experience luxury living in Laguna Phuket
Laguna Phuket is a stunning area located on the west coast of Phuket, Thailand. It is an ideal destination for property buyers looking for a luxurious, tropical lifestyle. The area is renowned for its stunning beaches and lush, tropical rainforest. With a range of amenities and activities, Laguna Phuket provides an idyllic setting for those looking to purchase a property,…
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Daughter jailed for 20 years after stealing 250 million baht from her mother
Where there is family there is love, so the slogan says, but this may not be the case for one Bangkok family after a daughter fleeced her sick mother of over 250 million baht. Yesterday, Phra Khanong Criminal Court sentenced Mawadee Sriwirat to 20 years in prison for falsifying documents to steal more than 250 million baht from her mother,…
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Police arrest boyfriend of murdered girlfriend dumped in a garbage bin
The man accused of murdering and dumping his girlfriend’s body in a garbage bin at the Khao Sok National Park at the border of Phang Nga and Surat Thani, surrendered to police yesterday. He allegedly admitted that jealousy drove him to lose his temper and commit murder. The murderer, Sukhon Kaewprapas, surrendered at Kapong Police Station in Phang Nga three…
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Punk pioneer & avante garde British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood dies, aged 81
Tributes poured in on hearing the news that punk pioneer and British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood has died aged 81. In a statement on Twitter, her fashion house said she died “peacefully and surrounded” by her family in Clapham, South London. Westwood came to public prominence in 1976 for the controversial clothes she made for a boutique that she run…
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Russian driver kills motorcycle rider in Phuket
A Russian man crashed his rented black SUV into a motorcycle and killed a Thai motorcycle rider on road in Phuket on Wednesday. Officers from Chalong Police Station and the Phuket Ruam Jai Rescue Team were notified about the incident at the Chalong Intersection on Patak Road in the Chalong sub-district of Phuket at about 9.20pm, Wednesday, December 28. The…
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Pakistani rapist freed from prison to marry victim
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) called a court’s decision to release a convicted rapist from prison so he can marry his victim a “gross violation of law” and a “miscarriage of justice.” A Pakistani court freed convicted rapist Daulat Khan after it was “agreed” he would marry his victim, enraging human rights activists who say the ruling risks…
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21 Thai citizens reported dead in fire casino in Cambodia
The death toll has risen on the fire incident this morning at the Grand Diamonds City and Casino in Poipet city in Cambodia. Thai officials confirmed that 21 Thai citizens were killed and another 53 were injured in the fire. The Cambodian authorities have not yet confirmed a full report on the deaths and injuries. Officials from the Burapa Internal…
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Aeroflot to launch direct flights from Bangkok to Irkutsk
Russian flag carrier Aeroflot is launching direct flights from Irkutsk in Russia to Bangkok, Thailand, starting January 18, 2023. A Boeing 737-800 will service the route which will run twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays, with a flight time of 6 hours and 25 minutes. Irkutsk, known as “Paris of Siberia,” is Russia’s 25th-largest city by population. It is the…
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110,000 traffic tickets issued to speeding drivers ahead of road safety campaign
The Highway Police Division revealed that 110,000 speeding tickets were issued ahead of Thailand’s seven-day road safety campaign. The Commissioner of the Royal Thai Police, Damronsak Kittiprapas, launched the road safety campaign named Seven-day Dangerous (7 วัน อันตราย) today, December 29. The campaign aims to reduce the number of road accidents during the traditional holiday season when many Thais will…
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A forgetful husband tests marriage after accidently abandoning his wife on a road trip after taking a quick leak
For richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, till death us do part, and in an emergency toilet break situation, every marriage is tested to some degree. And, an absent-minded husband truly tested the strength of his marriage on a road trip last week. He pulled over by the roadside to quickly take a leak before climbing back into…
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Road safety campaign spells disaster for Chiang Mai rescue services
A rescue service in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, is receiving the same “false alarm” phone call over and over again thanks to a controversial road safety campaign. Thailand sees a surge in road accidents and road deaths every year between December 29 – January 4, gaining the nickname “Seven Days of Danger.” Road safety campaigns aim to remind motorists to take…
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Thailand to offer free Covid-19 booster shots to foreign tourists
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports Ministry (MOTS) announced its plans to provide free Covid-19 booster shots for foreign tourists entering Thailand next year. The disclosure will be welcomed by many who fear another Covid wave after China announced it will open its borders and relax quarantine measures. The MOTS also briefed the press that the government will introduce the…
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