Thailand wakes up today to a cooler air and the rattle of distant thunder — scattered thundershowers are expected across several regions as meteorological forces shuffle cards across the map. A low‑pressure cell is parked over the lower Andaman Sea, while a moderate northeast monsoon continues to buffet the upper Gulf, upper South and upper Andaman Sea. The upshot: wet skies for the South, stronger winds and frequently choppy seas along coastal areas. Sea state and wind watch Mariners and beachgoers should take note. In the lower Gulf waves could climb to around 2 metres and become higher in a storm, while the upper Gulf is likely to see 1–2 metre seas. Northeasterly winds will be dominant around the southern coasts and may reach 35 km/h in places — strong enough to toss umbrellas and small boats about. The Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) is asking everyone near the shorelines to…
Posts published in “Thailand”
Bangkok’s love hotels aren’t usually the scene of international headlines, but on December 12 they became the unlikely hiding spot for 14 Chinese nationals accused of involvement in online scams. According to police investigations, the group slipped across the border from Myanmar into Thailand and took up residence in a love hotel in the capital — a place more associated with short stays than long-running criminal enterprises. Officers monitoring the area noticed an unusual flurry of activity: more than ten Chinese individuals repeatedly coming and going, which raised red flags and triggered a raid. When police entered the premises they found 14 men spread across multiple rooms, typically three to four people per room. The passport check that followed painted a messy immigration picture. Only seven of the detainees could produce valid documents. Of those seven, three had overstayed their visas and four showed no entry stamps at all. The…
When Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt stood at a podium on December 11 to launch a new childhood-obesity initiative, the audience didn’t just get policy speak and program timelines — they got a blast from the past. Behind him, projected above the stage, was a grainy childhood photograph of two delightfully chubby boys. The boys were later identified as Chadchart and his twin brother, Chanchai Sittipunt. The image halted scrolling thumbs and lit up Thai social media, but the campaign it introduced is no joke: “Don’t let children become obese” is the city’s fresh, ambitious push to shape healthier futures for Bangkok’s youngsters. A coalition of partners — and a memorable image The campaign is a collaboration between the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), the Thai Health Promotion Foundation, the Royal Danish Embassy in Thailand, Novo Nordisk Pharma, and Nudge Thailand. It sits under the wider “Bangkok: City for Better Health” policy…
On December 11, Cambodia paused to mourn one of its own. Mut Saveun, a 43-year-old soldier assigned to the 67th Tank Battalion and four months pregnant, was publicly honoured by officials after she was reportedly killed during a frontline clash with Thai forces the day before in the Boeung Trakoun area. The Minister of Women’s Affairs posted a message of sorrow, praising Saveun’s bravery and promising that her sacrifice would live on in the hearts of the Cambodian people. The details emerging from the border skirmish paint a picture that is equal parts tragic and puzzling. Saveun—described by officials as coming from a military family—left behind a husband and a daughter who is currently in her second year studying English literature at university. The image of a pregnant woman serving on a tense frontline understandably raises questions about how and why she came to be stationed there. Cambodian authorities emphasised…
Late on the evening of December 11, a routine night out in Phuket’s popular Karon area turned into a tragic and bewildering incident when an Australian man reportedly ran full force into a restaurant’s glass door and later died from severe blood loss. Authorities from Karon Police Station were alerted at about 10:30pm after reports of a disturbance, but by the time officers arrived the man had already been taken to Chalong Hospital. The scene left an unmistakable image: a shattered glass entrance and a large pool of blood in front of the restaurant. Staff and fellow diners were left shaken. The man’s identity has not been publicly disclosed while investigators piece together what happened that night. What the CCTV reveals Police reviewed CCTV footage from inside the venue to reconstruct the sequence of events. According to the footage and subsequent statements, the Australian arrived alone and sat at a…
The Supreme Court’s final hammer fell on December 11 at Chiang Rai Provincial Court: Mongkol Thirakhot, better known to many as Busbas, was sentenced to 46 years in prison for a string of Facebook posts. Once a 32‑year‑old clothing seller, Mongkol transformed into a vocal political activist — and now faces one of the harshest penalties in recent memory under Thailand’s lèse‑majesté law and the Computer Crime Act. The posts and the penalties Prosecutors tied Mongkol to 27 Facebook posts made between March and April 2021. Authorities concluded the posts violated Section 112 of the Criminal Code — Thailand’s notorious lèse‑majesté provision — as well as provisions of the Computer Crime Act. The Supreme Court’s decision upholds a combined sentence of 46 years — and crucially, the sentence will not be suspended. This verdict follows an earlier ruling from Appeals Court Region 5, which imposed a 50‑year sentence — also…
What began as a routine border crossing turned into a tense waiting game at Ban Khlong Luek — and the Royal Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh didn’t waste time sounding the alarm. An urgent letter was dispatched to Cambodia’s Ministry of Interior after reports surfaced that Thai nationals in Cambodia were being prevented from re-entering Thailand through the Sa Kaeo checkpoint. The episode, unfolding in early December 2025, has become another fraught chapter in the already strained Thai–Cambodian border story. Checkpoint drama: Thai nationals stuck, unanswered questions On Wednesday, December 11, Thai-Cambodian Border Coordination officials told Thai PBS that Cambodian authorities at Ban Khlong Luek had stopped Thai citizens from crossing back into Thailand. At the time, no official reason was given for the restriction — just confusion, uncertainty and long lines of travelers stuck on one side of the line. Adding fuel to the fire, relatives waiting with the…
There are reunions that make you smile and reunions that make you reach for tissues — and then there’s the extraordinary scene that unfolded in Ubon Ratchathani this week, where three adults flew across continents to thank a tricycle driver who tended to them more than five decades ago. What began as a short Facebook appeal quickly turned into an emotional pilgrimage, a little bit of detective work, and a powerful reminder of how small acts of kindness can echo for a lifetime. On Monday, December 8, Facebook user Siw Pittaya Chaisongkhram posted a video appeal that tugged at thousands of online hearts. Siw explained that three siblings — two men and a woman — had grown up in Thailand as young children while their father worked in the country as a soldier. They were roughly five years old at the time and were cared for, at least for short…
Ayutthaya’s normally quiet Bang Pa-in district was jolted awake on the morning of December 11 when a domestic dispute escalated into a dramatic shooting that left a 47-year-old man fighting for his life and his 51-year-old ex-wife in police custody—but insisting she acted in self-defence. Officers from Bang Pa-in Police Station and rescuers from the Ayutthaya Ruamjai Foundation arrived at a house in the Sam Ruean sub-district at around 10:00am after neighbours reported gunfire. In front of the home they found Karn, 47, lying on the ground with a bullet wound to his back that passed through his chest. He was in critical condition and could be heard calling for help while emergency teams worked to stabilise him before rushing him to hospital. The woman who fired the shots, identified as Supranee, 51 and Karn’s ex-wife, remained at the scene. According to officials she unlocked the house and cooperated with…
In a late-night political twist that felt part courtroom drama, part reality TV cliffhanger, Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced the dissolution of Parliament on the evening of December 11 — a move he framed bluntly and theatrically as an effort to “return power to the people.” The announcement, posted on his Facebook page around 10pm, confirmed that his government had sent a formal request for dissolution to the Palace. The royal sign-off arrived the next morning, December 12, turning a quiet digital post into a constitutional reset. What happens next? A timetable with teeth Under Thailand’s Constitution, once Parliament is dissolved a general election must be held within 45 to 60 days. That’s not a suggestion — it’s a countdown. The Election Commission (EC) is legally obliged to announce the election date and the candidate registration window within five days of the Royal Decree being issued, pushing the machinery…