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 Why health insurance costs more each year and how expats in Thailand can save more money
Each year, many expats living in Thailand see their health insurance premiums go up and often without a clear reason. This can be frustrating, especially when you're trying to plan your budget. But by understanding why prices rise and learning...
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Andaman’s Barren Island Volcano erupting
PHOTO: Volcano Hotspot According to volcanodiscovery.com, the Barren Island Volcano, situated about 800 kilometres north-west of Phuket, and 130 kilometres east of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is erupting today. There are currently no warnings or alerts about this occurrence – the volcano last erupted in December last year. According to volcanodiscovery.com, Barren Island, a possession of India in the…
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An earthquake, a tsunami, now a bubbling volcano – Sulawesi
PHOTO: North Sulawesi’s Mt Soputan erupts, status raised to Level 3’Alert’ – The Jakarta Post Mount Soputan in North Sulawesi’s Minahasa regency is emitting a 4 kilometre high plume of ash this . It started at 8:47 am local time, or 7:47 am. Jakarta time, prompting authorities to raise the volcano’s status to a Level 3 of the national four-level volcano alert system. Mount…
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Thousands of children among survivors desperate for aid – Sulawesi
PHOTO: VOA News “Survivors are also stepping forward on their own to retrieve bodies trapped under soil.” Tens of thousands of children are in an “extremely precarious” condition in the wake of last Friday’s earthquake on Sulawesi island, eastern Indonesia, even as survivors grow desperate for aid and fears mount that the death toll could rise further. Four days after…
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Survivors try to flee Palu as aid starts to flow in
PHOTO: Locals and aid volunteers are trying to start the long clean up in Palu – VOA News As aid and volunteers continue pour into north-western areas of Sulawesi, following last Friday’s 7.4-magnitude earthquake and the subsequent tsunami, survivors are scrambling to salvage food supplies and other items. Aid from the central Indonesian government is beginning to trickle into the…
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Trami storms through Japan, passes Tokyo last night
Some of the latest updates from reports coming out of Japan as Typhoon Trami continues its north-easterly trajectory through the Japanese archipelago. It’s currently early morning in Japan, and commuters are trying to get to work whilst contending with the aftermath of the Typhoon in the southern and central islands. The Typhoon unleashed its fury on some of Japan’s most populous…
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Typhoon Trami cuts across Japan
Another powerful typhoon is unleashing heavy rain and winds on southern Japan as it slowly trudges its way north-east toward the Japan’s main islands and population centres this morning. Typhoon Trami is the equivalent of Category 2 hurricane. It passed over the Ryukyu Islands on Friday evening after taking a slow right-hand track and heading north out of the Pacific…
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Death toll approaches 400 in Sulawesi earthquake aftermath
Rescuers are still struggling to reach remote communities on the island of Sulawesi hit by an earthquake and tsunami just before 6pm, local time, on Friday. A spokesperson of the local disaster agency has confirmed that the official death toll is now up to 384, almost all from the coastal township of Palu as a result of a tsunami. A…
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India has highest number of Facebook users but Singapore is Asia’s FB star
By DataLEADS – Asia News Network Facebook is the most popular social network worldwide and Asia is Facebook’s most active region in terms of active users. India has the most number of Facebook registered users not only in Asia but in the world. Facebook users in India now number 251 million, becoming the largest audience country for the social media giant.…
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Former Mae Hong Son border police chief gets suspended jail term for pimping out underage girl
The former commander of a border patrol police company in Mae Hong Son, north-west Thailand, has been given a suspended jail term and a small fine for forcing a girl under 18 into prostitution, according to the victim’s mother. The girl’s mother, Namphet Koeyputsa, says the Mae Hong Son Court convicted Pol Lt Col Pongnarin Pongnam, former commander of the…
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Typhoon Trami predicted to regain strength and hit Japan this weekend
Tropical Typhoon Trami has weakened and it is no longer considered a “super typhoon” but is still packing winds up to 195 kilometres per hour (121 mph). The islands in the storm’s projected path are bracing for its arrival. If the current projected path of the typhoon holds, Trami will hit the southern Japan Ryukyu islands, including Okinawa, some time…
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Duterte talks down a coup plot to remove him from office
The Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is calling on his police force not to join any “stupid” coup attempts against his Presidential administration. His warning follows reports of a plot to oust the outspoken President. The plot has been nicknamed “Red October.” Quoted in inquirer.net, President Duterte said yesterday, “Do not go into such stupid thing as coup d’ etat. You’re…
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South Korean band’s motivational UN speech transcends race and gender identity
by Yim Hyun-su (hyunsu@heraldcorp.com) K-pop sensation BTS embraced self-love and encouraged young people around the world to “speak themselves” regardless of their origin, skin color and gender identity, in a speech at the UN General Assembly in New York yesterday. Kim Nam-joon, better known as RM, said, “No matter who you are, where you are from, your skin color, your…
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New Hong Kong to Shenzhen high speed train launches today
It’s the first day of the new HK to Shenzhen high speed train service. At 7am the first hundreds of passengers departed the former British colony for mainland China at speeds up to 200 kph. The project, costing US$11 billion, is seen by some as a new, convenient and speedy track into mainland China and beyond. Others see it as…
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‘Stereotype’ problems for single Thai women travelling out of Thailand
A Thai woman has gone online to describe her experiences of being locked in a Johur Bahru immigration jail for three days. She said that Thai women travelling abroad alone, especially to other places in Asia, are often assumed to be working in the sex industry. The woman made her comments on the Pantip website under the name “Fernchiu” and said…
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Top 10 Museums in Asia
Asia has a lot of museums but many are a reminder about rough days in the past, moments in time remembered so they’re not repeated. Some of these Top 10 museums are just downright creepy. But they’re all interesting. Trip Advisor’s readers have ranked the Top 10 Asian museums. Thailand didn’t make it into the Top 10 but has a…
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Plastic straws to be banned in some Malaysian territories from January 1
Plastic straws are to be banned in all the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan in Malaysia from January 1 next year. Businesses which are still found to be using plastic straws in 2019 risk having their business licences terminated. Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Adnan Mohd Ikhsan says, “The ban on plastic straws is in addition to the…
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Soi Dog congratulates the Hanoi people’s committee ban on dog and cat meat trade
Barely 24 hours after urging citizens to stop eating dogs and cats, Hanoi’s authorities have announced that the sale of dog meat will be banned from the central districts of the city from 2021. The director of the city’s Department of Animal Health, Nguyen Ngoc Son, told Lao Dong Newspaper on Wednesday (September 12)… “Following a direction from the city’s…
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Japanese billionaire buys a ticket to the moon
Elon Musk, fresh from being sued by Vernon Unsworth for his slanderous comments during the Tham Luang cave rescue mission, has now announced that he is sending Japanese tourists up with his company Space X’s first moon mission. Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa will be Earth’s first moon tourist. It is not known how much he paid for the return trip…
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Thai fined $6,000 for defaulting on Singapore national service obligations
by The Straits Times – Asia News Network PHOTO: Ong Wee Jin A Thai national, registered as a Singaporean when he was just a year old, but never lived in Singapore, has been fined S$6,000 for defaulting on his national service obligations in the Lion City. 24 year old Ekawit Tangtrakarn, an application engineer, committed the enlistment offence before he ceased…
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Singapore #1, Thailand #6 – Asia’s most innovative nations
by DataLEADS/Asia News Network Singapore, South Korea and Japan are the most innovative countries in Asia whereas Pakistan and Bangladesh are the least innovative, according to the Global Innovation Index 2018 report. Thailand comes in number 6 out of the 17 ranked countries. The report analyses the energy innovation landscape of the next decade and identifies possible breakthroughs in fields…
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More than 60 dead as Mangkhut continues into southern China
The world’s strongest tropical storm this year, Typhoon Mangkhut, continues its path of destruction across Southeast Asia, reaching mainland China yesterday (Sunday) after pummeling Hong Kong and killing dozens in the Philippines. The storm, originating in the Pacific Ocean and first hitting Guam and the Marshall Islands, has been deadly with its high power winds hitting rural communities in The…
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Air Asia cancel flights into southern China
Air Asia has announced the cancellation of 32 regional flights through southern China scheduled on Sunday as there was potential the flights could be affected by Typhoon Mangkhut. Flights affected are routes landing in Hong Kong, Macau and Shenzhen, China. The affected return flights are Phuket-Macao, Don Mueng-Hong Kong, Don Meuang-Macao, Don Meuang-Shantou, Chiang Mai-Hong Kong, Utapao-Macao, Phuket-Hong Kong, Chiang…
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Typhoon Mankhut batters Hong Kong and Macau
Swaying buildings, scaffolding being torn off buildings under construction, collapsed walls, smashed windows and flooding. That’s the result after Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into Hong Kong and Macau today around lunchtime. Heavy rain and strong winds have delivered storm surges of up to three metres in coastal regions such as Heng Fa Chuen in eastern Hong Kong Island and Tai O…
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Mangkhut will hit China coast around noon today
Typhoon Mangkhut will pass over the coast of southern China and be closest to the Pearl Delta, one of the most densely urbanised regions in the world, around noon today. So far, it’s been recorded as she strongest storm this year. It’s just barreled through the northern Philippines and is now headed for China. It brought ferocious winds and torrential…
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Mangkhut claims two lives as it heads towards Hong Kong
Super Typhoon Mangkhut, the biggest storm of the year, smashed through The Philippines on Saturday, claiming its first victims when two women were killed after a rain-drench hillside collapsed on them and another drowned in Taiwan. The storm made landfall on the northern Philippine’s island around 2.30am this morning. The massive storm cut a swathe of destruction when it struck…
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Asian families travel twice as much as Western families
by The Star – Asia News Network, KL When it comes to vacations, Asian travellers take twice as many family trips as their Western peers. The Agoda Family Travel Trends 2018 survey found that over 34% travellers took more than five family trips in the past year. Asia dominates this multi-holiday trend with a remarkable 77% of travellers from Thailand and 62% from…
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Mangkhut bearing down on the northern tip of Luzon, The Philippines
The Philippines continues to evacuate thousands as soldiers and emergency workers continue to prepare shelter and emergency provisions. ‘Super’ Typhoon Mangkhut is threatening more than four million people in the northern island of Luzon. ‘Mangkhut’ is expected to make landfall on the island very early tomorrow (Saturday). Current wind speeds are up to a staggering 285 kilometers per hour (180…
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The Philippines and northern Vietnam prepare for typhoons
More than 4 million people in The Philippines are poised for the arrival of destructive typhoon-force winds caused by ‘Super’ Typhoon Mangkhut. The massive storm peaked on Wednesday and became, officially, the strongest storm of 2018 with winds up to 285 kph. Countries across east and southeast Asia, including The Philippines, Vietnam and China are issuing emergency alerts and ordering…
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28 million ASEAN jobs threatened by AI over the next decade
PHOTO: Krungsri Finnovate by Viet Nam News – Asia News Network, Hanoi Innovations in Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, coupled with its increased uptake, will have a big impact on the workforce across ASEAN countries over the next decade, according to a new study by Cisco and Oxford Economics. “Technology and the Future of ASEAN Jobs” claims that innovations in digital technology will…
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One ASEAN – no roaming charges
Vietnam talks up future ASEAN initiatives including an ASEAN University of information and communication technology during the World Economic Forum in Hanoi. By Vietnam News – Asia News Network. Hanoi Vietnam’s acting minister of information and communications, Nguyễn Mạnh Hùng, says that Vietnam, as an emerging economy, should be able to take advantage of the fourth industrial revolution, even though the country missed…
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