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 Planning to extend your Thai visa? Why health insurance is more important than ever
If you plan to stay longer in Thailand, having health insurance is now more important than ever. Thai immigration often asks for proof of medical coverage when you apply to extend your visa. This applies to many types of visas,...
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Air Asia celebrates ASEAN Day with a special Airbus A320
AirAsia introduced a ‘Sustainable ASEAN’ colour-scheme on a new Airbus A320 to mark ASEAN Day celebrations last week. Thailand is the Chair for ASEAN, the ten country south east asian trading bloc, for 2019. Alongside the ASEAN Chairmanship logo, the livery features the best of ASEAN tourism icons, helping to advance and support AirAsia’s sustainability partnership with ASEAN nations and…
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Myanmar’s death toll from landslides and floods reaches 59
Vast regions of south and sout-eastern Myanmar are inundated with floodwaters that have already forced more than 80,000 to flee their homes. The death toll from a massive landslide has now hit 59. Rescue and recovery teams have worked right through the weekend, with additional downpours and deep mud hindering progress as the stench of decaying bodies worsened. There are…
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Airport shutdown tarnishes Hong Kong’s business image
PHOTO & VIDEO: Bill Barnett, c9hotelworks.com Thousands of supporters of the largely leaderless pro-democracy protest movement descended on the Hong Kong Airport terminal yesterday in an effort to get the message out to the world about their struggle and the harsh tactics used by police. They achieved that result whilst testing the resolve of Beijing, accusing the protest organisers of…
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Thailand’s longest wooden bridge under threat of collapse after rains soak west
The famous Mon (Uttamanusorn) Bridge in Kanchanaburi in Thailand’s west, the country’s longest wooden bridge, is being watched around the clock by the Thai army for fear that it may collapse under the force of strong currents in the Songkalia River and a huge amount of debris which is piling up against the bridge’s superstructure. Uttamanusorn Bridge (Thai: สะพานอุตตมานุสรณ์; lit:…
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HK protesters test China’s resolve – The latest from Hong Kong Airport
Latest information out of the Hong Kong Airport which has been virtually shut down because of the ongoing protests. All flights grounded: All departing flights have been cancelled in Hong Kong, as thousands of demonstrators descend on the city’s International Airport earlier Monday. Alleged police brutality: A small number of protesters have been demonstrating at the airport all weekend, but…
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US-China trade war accelerates formation of RCEP trade bloc
The escalation of the trade war between China and the US might help push forward negotiations of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) free trade agreement. RCEP, once formed, will be the largest trading bloc in the world. Trade ministers from China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and the 10 ASEAN member states met in Beijing last weekend for…
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Myanmar flood toll reaches 51 – 4,000 houses submerged
PHOTOS: Myanmar Times Burmese troops have been deployed to flood-hit parts of Myanmar to help with relief efforts after rising flood waters have left thousands stranded, mostly in the southern parts of the country. The death toll from the landslide has jumped to 51. This year’s monsoonal floods have tested the government’s ability to respond after a the fatal landslides…
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Floods and landslides in southern Myanmar – at least 41 dead
PHOTOS: SBS News The latest in the flood situation in southern Myanmar… • Continuous monsoon rain since the start of the month has resulted to flooding in several areas in Southern Myanmar – Ayeyarwady, Bago, Kayin, Mon, and Tanintharyi. • According to the Department of Disaster Management, a rain-induced landslide occurred in a village in Paung Township (Mon State) on…
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Huawei hedges its bets and unveils the Harmony phone operating system
As a hedge against any further hostility from the US in its claims against the Chinese tech giant’s alleged involvement with the Chinese Government, Huawei has unveiled its own operating system for smartphones that it says can replace Android if US sanctions against them cut off access to the Google eco-system and software, and US-made technology products. Huawei Technologies, the…
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Myanmar court jails Australian publisher for 13 years over drugs charges
PHOTO: Soe Zeya Tun A Myanmar court yesterday sentenced 60 year old Australian media publisher Ross Dunkley to 13 years in jail after a police raid uncovered a stash of drugs at his home in Yangon in 2018. Ross has extensive links with the media industry across Southeast Asia, co-founding the English language newspaper The Myanmar Times when Myanmar was…
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Top six tips when visiting Royal Thai Consulate General in Penang
PHOTO: New Royal Thai Consular General in Penang An FOT (Friend of Thaiger) has returned from applying for a visa with the Royal Thai Consulate General in Penang, a popular port to the south of Thailand for ‘southern’ expats and tourists seeking visa upgrades, renewals or even for their first run. Thanks to Daren Jenner for the following tips if…
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Myanmar’s army controls vast business empire to fuel atrocities – UN report
PHOTO: Front of the Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited building UN investigators have slammed the Myanmar Government saying that tougher sanctions are needed against the country’s wealthy and powerful military officials as their web of economic interests has generated a fortune that helps fund atrocities. The report follows a US travel ban on Myanmar’s army chief last month, the strongest censure yet…
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Airbus starts manufacturing new A220 in Alabama, US
The new Airbus A220 aircraft was touring south east asian countries, including a visit to Bangkok on Friday, last week. Today the aircraft manufacturers officially began manufacturing the A220 in the US. The first team of A220 production workers began work at Airbus’ Mobile, Alabama-based production facility. Some Thai-based airlines, including Thai Airways, are reported to be interested in the…
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Weekend RCEP meeting move closer to the world’s biggest trading bloc
PHOTO: Asia Nikkei Whilst the UK looks to walk away from the EU trade bloc and the US continues to ramp up the trade war with China, the formation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which would be the largest trade bloc in the world, continues to gather pace. The RCEP, initiated by ASEAN in 2012, is a proposed…
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US President shares “thoughts and prayers” over Texas shooting while a second mass shooting happens in Ohio
PHOTO: France 24 US President Donald Trump and wife Melania have sent “heartfelt thoughts and prayers” to the families and friends of victims in one of two mass murder gun attacks in the past 24 hours. About 20 people were killed and 26 injured in a shooting rampage at a Walmart and neighbouring stores in El Paso, Texas on Saturday…
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Hong Kong protesters defy China’s warnings with more rallies
Anti-government protesters kicked off another mass rally yesterday as they defy increasingly stern warnings from China over the unrest that has plunged the city into crisis. The semi-autonomous Chinese financial hub has seen two months of protests and clashes triggered by opposition to a planned extradition law. Emboldened by the early win for the proposed extradition laws to be withdrawn,…
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Currency investors factor in no-deal Brexit as pound flounders
The world’s stock markets and economists think leaving the EU won’t have a sterling outcome. That’s the way the protracted Brexit negotiations are playing out in a slow, drawn out and economically painful rout of the GBP. The British pound hit a two year low of $1.212 against the USD on Tuesday, just another blow for the currency following several…
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Dams, politics and greed are killing the mighty Mekong River
Original story by Piyaporn Wongruang – The Nation | PHOTO: Sophie et Fred Dr Chainarong Setthachua, a lecturer and ecology expert at Maha Sarakham University, was at a loss when asked to describe the ongoing Mekong crisis. “The most disastrous situation in history.” Little is being done by governments despite recent stories and stark photos of the dried-bed of a major…
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Two suspects held over last night’s ‘fake’ bomb, security ramped up at ASEAN meeting
PHOTO: A suspect leaving the area of the Royal Thai Police headquarters last night captured on CCTV “I condemn the mastermind behind this morning’s bomb blasts, which destroy people and the country’s image. I have asked officials to beef up security for members of the public and take urgent care of those affected by the explosions.’’ – Thai PM Prayut…
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Stormy weather for the Thai north and northeast later this week
The Thai Meteorological Department has issued warnings about possible impacts from a tropical storm expected to reach Vietnam tomorrow and Friday, August 1 and 2. The area of low pressure which formed west of the Philippines reaches southeast China from today. Should this system strengthen into a tropical storm, it will be given the name ‘Wipha’. The TMD reports that the…
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Human traffickers leave 6 Rohingya starving in abandoned building in Hat Yai
PHOTOS: Workpoint News Six Rohingya were left to die in an abandoned building located in Hat Yai, Songkhla. Members of the group eventaully left the building in search of food and officials are now searching for more hiding in the area. They had been waiting there for 5 days. Thai Police were notified by nearby villagers yesterday trying to assist…
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Leonardo DiCaprio praises Thailand for efforts to increase the population of wild tigers
American actor, film producer, and environmentalist, Leonardo DiCaprio, has praised Thailand for its efforts to increase the population of wild tigers in the Huai Kha Kheng wildlife sanctuary in Thailand’s western forests. On Global Tiger Day (July 29), DiCaprio shared his enthusiasm for south east asian tigers. “In Thailand’s Huai Kha Khaeng wildlife sanctuary, tigers are roaring back thanks to a…
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Myanmar Jade mine landslide kills at least 19
At least 19 jade mine workers along with mine security guards were killed in a landslide on Sunday. Rescuers have been searching for survivors. The incident is reported to have happened early Sunday morning in the remote Hpakant township in the north of Myanmar. Two police officers were also injured but were rescued and sent to hospital. Authorities also reported…
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Thai police in the Laos capital searching for gold thieves
Khon Kaen provincial police headed over the Laotian border to the Laos capital Vientiane after learning that a pair of Thai gold shop robbers had fled over the border, according to sanook.com. The robbers fled to Vientiane with gold ornaments and jewellery valued around 10 million baht they stole from the Khon Kaen gold shop on July 27. Police say that…
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“The Great Hack” makes you think twice about how you use social media
It’s a documentary about Cambridge Analytica. You know, that dodgy company you’d never heard of until The Guardian and New York Times did some real reporting and dug into the deep, deep hole we’ve dug for ourselves by leaping into social media without reading the fine print. It’s a Netflix production as the online streamer continues to become a mainstream…
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Bangkok hosts ASEAN Foreign Ministers meetings from today
The 52nd ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting starts today. Representatives from more than 30 countries will attend the meetings. The regional talkfest is being held at Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention Centre. Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai will chair the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and co-chair the Post Ministerial Conferences with the Dialogue Partners and other meetings. Other meetings include the…
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Xayaburi Dam owners say they’re not responsible for dry Mekong River
PHOTO: The Laotian Times CK Power, operators of the new Xayaburi Dam in Laos, are denying their dam tests (running from July 15 until tomorrow) are responsible for the low water flows in the Mekong River. The tests were a lead up to full scale production of electricity from October this year, most of which will head to Thailand. Fingers…
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Over 600 foreigners arrested in southern Thailand for overstays and illegal entry
PHOTO: Manager 686 people have been arrested in southern Thailand, mostly foreigners, on a variety of offences of working illegally or being involved in human trafficking. Thailand’s Region 6 immigration reported that the people were arrested between July 1-25. Immigration reported… • 436 people have been arrested as illegal migrant workers and had illegally entered Thailand • 49 had no…
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Philippines tourism surges, despite last year’s Boracay closedown
The Philippines Department of Tourism is reporting that 2018 closed with a 7.68% increase in tourist arrivals. Last year’s six month closure of tropical paradise Boracay, from May to October, seems to have little affect on the overall growth of the country’s tourism. The island closed down last year for a ‘makeover’, mainly to tackle pollution after the country’s president…
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Satun fisherman arrested trying to ship 216 kilos of marijuana south to Malaysia
PHOTOS: The Nation A fisherman has been arrested trying to smuggle 216 kilograms of marijuana into Malaysia. The fishing boat had been modified for the purpose of hiding and smuggling the drugs. Officials received a tip-off earlier this week that a large batch of marijuana was being stored in Satun’s Tambon Tammalang district. Officials had learnt that a large shipment…
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