World News
World news, global politics, business, technology, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, international trends, and major events. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for global news.
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Sponsored Long-term life in Thailand? 5 reasons private health insurance pays off in the long run
Thailand is a great place for expats and retirees, offering a warm climate, affordable living, and rich culture. However, healthcare can be tricky for foreigners since they aren’t eligible for public health coverage, and private care can be expensive. Private...
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Passengers leave Yokohama virus ship, China toll tops 2000
Passengers onboard the Diamond Princess, the coronavirus-wracked cruise ship which has been quarantined in Yokohama’s harbour for two weeks, began disembarking today after testing negative for the disease that has now claimed more than 2,000 lives in China. The ship proved a fertile breeding ground for the COVID-19 coronavirus, with at least 542 positive cases, the largest cluster of confirmed…
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Cambodia’s carelessness over coronavirus could bring disaster
When passengers from the MS Westerdam disembarked in Sihanoukville, Cambodia on Valentine’s Day last week, it was smiles and handshakes all around, as Prime minister Hun Sen greeted them with roses. Protective masks were nowhere to be seen. Not only did the PM not wear one, his bodyguards ordered people wearing masks to take them off. The next day, the…
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World travel suffers as coronavirus outbreak drags on
The Public Health Ministry is asking Thais planning trips to Japan and Singapore to reschedule their visits, saying that travellers need to be aware of the rising number of people infected by the coronavirus (Covid-19) in those two countries. Dr Sukhum Kanchanapima, the permanent secretary at the Thai Public Health Ministry, says the coronavirus outbreak had reached the third stage…
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The Great Hong Kong Toilet Roll Heist of 2020
And now from the files of the ‘Laws of Unintended Consequences’, a coronavirus story with a twist. Police in Hong Kong have arrested two men and are still searching for a third following a toilet paper roll heist. Some 600 paper rolls were stolen in a panic-theft linked to shortages over the coronavirus. Yesterday morning a delivery was being made…
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Toilet paper vs bum gun – which one is better?
Put down your knife and fork. We’re going to talk about bumguns, arse-blasters and Number 2s. Let’s take a moment and travel to a western country and sit on the toilet. We do whatever we need to do and then… where’s the water gun? Instead you’re confronted with a roll of toilet paper, patterned or otherwise (why?!) Asian people have been…
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Coronavirus UPDATE: WHO fights the ‘infodemic’, recession fears in Europe
A total number of 67,100 cases of Coronavirus (covid-2019) have now been confirmed worldwide, along with 1,526 deaths reported and 8,193 people recovered. The number of reported full recoveries is now over 5 times the rate of reported deaths, and continues to rise each day. The infodemic… On top of the spread of the virus, there has been increasingly dangerous…
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Singapore megachurch suspends services, goes online
Facing a burgeoning crisis in the southeast Asian island-state, Singapore’s biggest megachurch, with a congregation of 16,000, will stop holding services this weekend due to the rising number of coronavirus cases and instead broadcast its lively, gospel-style message online. City Harvest Church is one of the most profitable churches in Asia, but has been embroiled in a corruption scandal in…
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Coronavirus UPDATE: Vietnam village quarantined, worldwide cases reach 64,448
Latest coronavirus stats Infected patients worldwide reaches 64,448 whilst the death toll from the coronavirus has plateaued in the past 24 hours to 1,383. According to the Chinese National Health Commission, the current number of infections of coronavirus (aka. covid-2019) in mainland China is 63,8591, up some 5,000 from the day before. 7,101 patients have now full recovered. There are at…
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Thai Embassy in Beijing ordered to care for 3 locals stranded in Wuhan
Thailand’s Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai yesterday ordered the Thai embassy in Beijing to take care of three Thai citizens stranded in Wuhan, the epicentre of the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak. The three didn’t join the 138 Thai evacuees who returned on February 4. One of the three is a woman who overstayed her visa and has yet to pay the fine.…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – sharp increase in cases, UK officials battle to contain a new threat
There’s been a sharp spike in new cases of coronavirus, principally in the central Chinese province of Hubei. There are now 60,373 world cases, 59,805 in China. 1,369 people have died and over 6,000 recovered. 242 new deaths were recorded yesterday, the deadliest day since the start of the outbreak. So what’s behind the big rise? It’s not actually a spike…
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Teen kills friend with homemade gun
A 17 year old boy is dead after he was accidentally shot by a friend with a homemade hand gun in the western province of Kanchanaburi. His teenage friend was showing off the gun to a group of friends early Wednesday morning. Police say the shooting was reported about 4:20am and occurred in a rented room in Kanchanaburi. Police and…
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Myanmar tourism increases a massive 40% in 2019
Myanmar has ranked highest among the world’s 20 quickest-growing travel destinations over the past 12 months. The report from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation. Vietnam and The Philippines are also regional winners over the past year that made it into the top 10 best performing emerging travel destinations. Myanmar Tourism Marketing, part of the Myanmar Tourism Federation, reports that…
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New criteria push the number of suspected virus cases to 615
The director-general of the Department of Disease Control (DDC) said on Friday there were 615 people in Thailand suspected of carrying the 2019-nCoV coronavirus. He attributed the rise in suspected cases to updated criteria generating more details and redefining the term “suspected.” The number of confirmed cases has risen to 32 as of today, 10 of whom have recovered and…
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PM to launch “Green City” intiative
The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MOAC) will officially launch the “Green City Initiative by MOAC” campaign at Siam Paragon Shopping Complex in downtown Bangkok today. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha will preside over the official opening ceremony, which will include distribution of seedlings of six plants known to be effective in absorbing pollution. The goal is to tackle air pollution caused…
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3 dead, 179 injured in Istanbul aircrash
Three people are dead and 179 injured, some seriously after a Pegasus Airlines plane heading into Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport skidded off the end of a wet runway and broke into three pieces upon landing yesterday. Turkey’s health minister Fahrettin Koca told reporters that three died in hospital, with 179 of the 183 aboard wounded. Ali Yerlikaya, Istanbul’s governor, says…
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Train hits car in Chiang Mai, family survives
Police from Chiang Mai’s Saraphi police station yesterday received a report of a train hitting a car and rushed with rescuers to the scene at a crossing in Yang Nueng district. Once there, they found a badly damaged black Toyota Vios. The rescue team helped a family of three from the vehicle and took them to hospital, while the damaged…
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China now battling an outbreak of bird flu in Hunan
On top of the growing Coronavirus outbreak and efforts of authorities to contain the spread, Chinese officials have now reported a case of the potent H5N1 bird flu in Shaoyang city in central China’s Hunan province. The province is south of Hubei but the outbreak of bird flu is unrelated to the Wuhan coronavirus. Avian influenza, aka. H5N1, avian flu…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – Confirmed cases exceed 17,000, 362 deaths
The Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has now spread to 27 countries and territories worldwide. There are 17,387 confirmed cases and 362 deaths as of this morning. Welcome to our Monday morning update as we enter a new month with the coronavirus still growing , both inside China and outside, with the first death outside China over the weekend – a 44…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – first death outside China, 14,559 confirmed cases
Deaths from the coronavirus outbreak have now reached 305 today, including the first outside China, a 44 year old Chinese man in the Philippines. 14,559 people are now confirmed with the virus, the vast majority in China. Whilst the fatality rate remains at 2% with the current level of cases, many have also recovered and returned home. Many remain in…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – 14,551 confirmed cases, first death outside China
“The Philippines has confirmed this morning the second coronavirus case in the country and, notably, the first death in the country and the first outside China” Philippines’ Health Secretary Francisco Duque III Deaths from the coronavirus outbreak have now reached 304 today. 14,551 people are now confirmed with the virus. An increasing number of countries are also imposing restriction on travel…
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Brexit – a personal diary
Opinion by David Skelcey Friday, June 24, 2016 I woke up in my caravan at Glastonbury Music Festival, headed to the toilet and while doing my business read the news I was dreading. The Leave campaign had won the Brexit referendum by 51% to 49%. After getting dressed and kissing my sleeping partner and kids goodbye I headed off to…
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Coronavirus UPDATE: Thai cases up to 19, US declares coronavirus a public health emergency
Total confirmed worldwide cases: 11,374 Total confirmed cases in China: 11,221 Total conformed cases in Thailand: 19 Total deaths: 259 And, as the weeks wear on, it is clear that most people are recovering from their symptoms and getting on with their lives. No one, outside of China, has died from the coronavirus infection. Many countries have now issued strict…
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Indonesian authorities offer reward for getting tyre off crocodile
Any croc-whisperers out there? Authorities in Indonesia are offering a reward to anyone who can rescue a saltwater crocodile with a motorbike tyre stuck around its neck. The huge crocodile has had the tyre around its neck for several years. One brave croc wrangler will land an unspecified amount of cash, but it will mean coming face to face with the…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – confirmed cases exceed SARS outbreak, death toll reaches 213
The last day of January and the number of coronavirus cases now heads towards 10,000, confirmed cases in China, as of Friday morning, is 9,692. Confirmed deaths, all in China, are now 213. The number of confirmed cases now exceeds the total number of SARS cases during the outbreak in 2002/2003. 42 of the new deaths occurred in Hubei province,…
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Airlines temporarily suspend flights to China
British Airways is suspending all direct flights to and from mainland China due to the Wuhan Coronavirus, making it one of the biggest international carriers to do so so far. The suspension comes after Britain warned against all but essential travel to the China on Tuesday. BA.com, the airline’s website, shows no direct flights to China are available through February.…
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“Surgical masks no guarantee against coronavirus” – medical experts
The Wuhan Coronavirus is making news around the world and the sight of people wearing face-masks is now becoming common – whether they’re in a high-risk area or not. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has upgraded the global threat level to “high.” Many countries have banned or reduced flights from China and are stepping up screening efforts at their airports.…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – Total virus cases surpass 7,000
The statistics keep rising, a mathematical tally of a human dimension. The world is trying to come to grips with a new, largely unknown, viral strain with flu-like symptoms that attacks the respiratory system. The good news, if any, from the latest outbreak is that most people are either ending up with “mild symptoms” and most recovering. 20% of current…
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Top 6 fake coronavirus news stories
The deadly Wuhan Coronavirus outbreak, which has infected thousands and spread to 15 countries since it emerged in China, has also spawned many false claims on social media. Here’s a selection of false stories debunked by AFP’s Fact Check service… 1. Sydney food is not contaminated In Australia, multiple Facebook posts shared hundreds of times claim to show a list of…
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Coronavirus UPDATE – 6,057 confirmed cases, 132 dead, Wednesday 11.30am
The Coronavirus has now infected a confirmed 6,057 people who are undergoing treatment, and the death toll has reached 132. 125 of those deaths are isolated to Hubei Province in central China. The largest city of Hubei is Wuhan, the epicentre of the current outbreak which first came to light in mid-December last year at a fresh meat market. Germany…
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Coronavirus – WHO says it remains unclear when people become contagious
The World Health Organisation has announced that… “it remains unclear if the deadly coronavirus, which broke out in Wuhan, China five weeks ago, is contagious during its incubation period before symptoms appear. The virus, causing a pneumonia-like respiratory infection, has killed more than 100 people and infected over 4,500 in China, while cases are now identified in more than a dozen…
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