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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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Sponsored Moving with family? Here’s how to cut health costs in Thailand
Relocating to Thailand with your family brings exciting new opportunities, but it also comes with the challenge of managing healthcare costs in a new system. Thailand has both public and private healthcare options, each offering different prices and quality of...
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Oil tanker explosion on Chao Phraya River kills 1 crew member, injures 3
An explosion on an oil tanker on the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok has killed 1 crew member and injured 3. According to a Thai PBS World report, the explosion occurred yesterday afternoon at the Bangchak depot in the district of Phra Khanong. The Ampar 8 Bangkok, which was carrying around 3 million litres of crude oil, was mooring when…
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Second black box recorder found for crashed China Eastern Boeing 737
Recovery crews at the site of the China Eastern Boeing 737 that cashed last Monday, have found the second black box recording device, This time it’s the flight data recorder after the cockpit voice recorder was found last Wednesday. The China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 jet crashed into a mountainside in southern China last Monday afternoon, plummeting from its cruising…
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Biden slams Russia’s Putin as a ‘butcher’, who “cannot remain in power”
While giving a speech in Warsaw, United States president Joe Biden slammed Russia’s president Putin as a ‘butcher’, stressing that he “cannot remain in power”. Biden added that he was not sure whether Russia had changed its objectives, which he said so far have led to “strategic failure”. The Whitehouse insisted Biden isn’t seeking regime change in Russia, and Biden…
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Phuket police find dead body floating, caught on mangrove trees
Local residents have found a man’s dead body floating in the waters off Phuket’s east coast, and caught in the mangroves off Koh Kaew. Phuket City Police, hospital staff, and a forensic expert rushed to the scene. After taking the body out of the water for examination, they identified the man as Sahat Bunchan. He was 59 years old, and…
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Getting a motorcycle taxi in Bangkok, or anywhere in Thailand
We’ll start off by stating that there is nothing quicker and more efficient than getting a motorcycle taxi around Bangkok, compared to just about any other form of transport. We’ll also admit that there are dangers involved with riding on a motorcycle or motorbike around Thailand, especially if you’re not wearing a helmet (which you can ask the rider for).…
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On anniversary of bloodshed, Myanmar army chief vows to “annihilate” opponents
Days after human rights groups published an extensive report accusing Myanmar’s junta chief of targeting unarmed protestors, the Burmese chief vowed today to “annihilate” opponents of the junta. Today is the anniversary of Myanmar’s most violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests. The army chief, Min Aung Hlaing, said the military will “no longer negotiate… and annihilate until the end” groups fighting…
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Foreigner in Pattaya bleeding after alleged altercation with security
A foreign man in Pattaya was left bleeding from several serious injuries in what witnesses say was an altercation with security. The witnesses found the man lying on the ground in the middle of Pratumnak Soi 5. The altercation allegedly happened at night in front of a ‘restaurant’ there. As the man lay on the ground, a few other foreigners…
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Drug abuse in Bodybuilding in Thailand | The Dark Side of Fitness
Fitness craze is real. Body builders from around the world love to travel to Thailand to work out. Sometimes, to abuse the easy access drugs with no repercussions in Thailand. In this episode Jay sits with fitness expert Walter Veale to learn more about the drug abuse in the fitness world in Thailand.
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Gas pipe falls on Rayong construction worker, kills him
A gas pipe fell on a construction worker in Rayong yesterday, killing him. A backhoe that was supposed to lift the pipe couldn’t handle the pipe’s weight, and the pipe fell into a ditch where three workers were connecting gas pipes. Two workers managed to jump out and narrowly escape, while one did not. The pipe fell on him, and…
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2 people per hour were killed in road accidents in Thailand in 2020
A Thai health foundation has found that two people were killed in road accidents every hour in Thailand in 2020. The total number of people killed in road accidents throughout that year was 17,831. The foundation, Thai Health Promotion Foundation, said motorcycle drivers and riders made up the 74% of fatalities. The International Health Policy Program said in its report…
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Thai university expels hazing students, father of dead victim rejects financial compensation
15 senior Thai university students, involved in the violent and fatal hazing (bullying) of a freshman on March 13, have been dismissed from the Rajamangala University of Technology Isaan, Thailand. The ritual involved a total of 30 2nd year students and 37 freshmen, and resulted in the death of 19 year old Padyos “Prem” Chonpakdi. 10 other students, involved directly…
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Punishment for ‘Joe Ferrari’ seven police will be decided June 8
Thailand’s Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases will decide punishment for the seven so-called ‘Joe Ferrari’ police on June 8. The seven former police officers allegedly suffocated a drug suspect to death with a plastic bag. They face four charges: malfeasance, abuse of authority, torture causing death, and coercion. The victim’s parents have demanded 1.55 million baht from…
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Thai government unleashes the fear machine for Songkran – OPINION
Today a popular English-language news outlet led with a story that quotes Dr Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai, DG of the Department of Health, who claims the public health ministry is forecasting daily Covid infections could hit 100,000 after Songkran this year. The Thai public health ministry, headed up by Minister and deputy PM, Anutin Charnvirakul, has taken a random stab in the…
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Wildlife officials uncover 5th turtle nest in Phang Nga
After finding four others earlier this month, officials at a national park in Phang Nga have discovered another turtles’ nest, complete with 73 fertilised eggs. The officials work for Khao Lampi Hat-Thai Muang National Park, and found the nest on Thai Muang Beach. Officials first saw the mother turtle’s on the beach early in the morning yesterday. They found the…
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British and Thai armies train in jungle together
The UK announced in a press release yesterday that 120 of its military’s Grenadier Guards are training in the jungle with Thailand’s army. The UK Defence Minister visited Thailand this week and met with Thailand’s deputy defence minister. The Minister signed the first Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries, to continue building defence cooperation between the countries’ militaries. The…
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BMA and CCSA will meet Monday, decide on Songkran water splashing in Bangkok
Thailand’s CCSA and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration will meet on Monday to decide (again) if Bangkokians can splash water during Songkran. This news comes after officials announced last week that Songkran will be dry, for both alcohol and water splashing, for the third year in a row. That week, Thai officials said only traditional Songkran activities would be allowed. This…
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Thailand, a yacht racing destination
It all started in 1986 when a select group from the elite Royal Varuna Yacht Club (RVYC) got together and decided to launch a regatta in Phuket in 1987 – as a special tribute for the 60th birthday of the then King of Thailand, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Thus the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta (PKCR) was born. Royally connected…
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Iran-backed Houthis attack Saudi petroleum storage facilities
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi party says it struck Saudi petroleum facilities in Jeddah with missiles yesterday, just as Saudi Arabia prepares to hold a motor race on Sunday. The missiles caused fires in two storage tanks, however there were no casualties. A Houthi spokesman says they targeted ‘vital facilities’. Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter. Saudi’s energy ministry said…
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Officials debate Bangkok’s Sanam Luang public park
Thai officials are debating how much access the public should have to Sanam Luang, the historic public square in front of Bangkok’s Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha. After a governor candidate running under the Move Forward Party advocated removing fences around Sanam Luang, another official has defended keeping them and restricting access to the ‘public’ park. The…
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Health officials warn about 100,000 daily Covid cases after Songkran
As Songkran approaches, health officials are warning that daily Covid caseloads could reach over 100,000 after festivals “if Thais don’t take precautions”. Even before Songkran, the Department of Health predicted daily cases could rise to 50,000. But now they’ve doubled their prediction. PM Prayut is also urging Thais to “take precautions”, particularly before visiting elderly family members. A government spokesman…
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Workers on online platforms are reportedly underpaid – Thailand Labour Ministry
Since the outbreak of Covid-19, a lot of people have been working from home, and many have become freelancers. The idea might sound good on paper, but they faced many challenges from having limited access to government welfare and being underpaid and undervalued. Thai Health Promotion Foundation and the Labour Ministry had organised a forum for people to voice their…
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8 cobras invade elderly lady’s home in Central Thailand
An elderly lady from the central Thai province of Nakhon Si Ayutthaya found eight cobras slithering around her house. 77 year old Cherry Puangrod was at her home in Bang Pa-in district alone yesterday evening when she walked into the bathroom and saw a cobra from the corner of her eye. Cherry ran out of the house to get her…
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Monk flees from temple after residents spot him stealing underwear
A Thai TV star searched the quarters of a monk accused of stealing ladies’ underwear and found both men’s and women’s underwear in the monk’s luggage. The couple living nearby the temple in the central province of Chachoengsao checked the CCTV footage after the wife’s underwear went missing and say they saw a monk taking the panties off a hanger…
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Three fishermen found clinging to a foam crate in the middle of the sea
Three fishermen were found clinging to a foam crate in the middle of the ocean yesterday by another group of fishermen after their boat sank in the middle of the night. Facebook user Yuranan Thongprem posted at 10:04am yesterday: “A bit of an exciting story. We took our boat out to go deep-sea fishing and saw a foam crate far…
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Human bones found in tank buried at Surat Thani plantation
Warning: The photo below contains images that some may find disturbing. Human bones were found in an oil tank buried at a rubber plantation in the southern province of Surat Thani. The landowner guessed the skeletons might belong to a Burmese worker who was missing four years ago. The land is being cleared for durian trees and workers were using…
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Bangkok man arrested for allegedly luring boys into porn, believed to be part of ring
Today, police arrested a Bangkok man they believe is involved in a child pornography ring. The arrest was part of a raid in four spots today, which are Bangkok, Ang Thong, Chaiyaphum and Kanchanaburi. A police major general said police started investigating the ring when a child pornography suspect was arrested in the northeastern province of Nakhon Phanom in February.…
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Two Thai women allegedly drug tourist at Bangkok hotel, steal US$4,000
A foreign tourist who took two Thai women back to his hotel room in Bangkok was reportedly drugged and robbed. The women allegedly took off with US$4,000 and 15,000 baht in cash as well as other belongings. It is believed that drugs were mixed in the man’s coffee cup. The tourist, who is a firefighter from Kuwait, travelled to Thailand…
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Asia News Today | North Korea missile launch rattles US/South Korea & Myanmar’s ‘sniper’ squads
North Korea has fired its first intercontinental ballistic missile in more than four years. Well, that’s what Japan’s defence ministry is calling it. The suspected ICBM flew to an altitude of 6,000 kilometres and a distance of just over 1000 kilometres, flying around 70 minutes before splashing down in waters off Japan’s western coast yesterday. The provocative test is North…
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Police in Isaan Thailand told to be lenient with cannabis growers after grandma’s arrest
Following the arrest of a 70-year-old woman and her relative for growing a cannabis plant at their home in the Isaan province Khon Kaen, local police have been advised to use common sense, and good judgment when enforcing the laws on cannabis as Thailand loosens laws to become more marijuana-friendly. The women spent the night in jail and were punished…
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Thai and Cambodian officers raid two offices of alleged call centre scams
Thai and Cambodian authorities raided two offices of an alleged call centre scam operation in Cambodia. 61 Thai and Chinese suspects were arrested. The officer also found a dialogue or conversation script that each scammer followed and used to lure victims into transferring money. Yesterday, the Thai Police Cyber Taskforce and officers in Cambodia raided two suspected scam call centre…
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