Tag Archives: Thailand

MNA International Desk: Thai security forces have killed a soldier who shot dead at least 29 people during a brutal rampage on Saturday. Police and military personnel stormed the Terminal 21 shopping mall in the northwestern city of Nakhon Ratchasima to face suspected gunman Sgt Jakrapanth Thomma. Of those who died, 23 were civilians, three were police officers and three were army officers. Officials said the soldier, who has been confirmed dead, was angry over a land deal. His death brought an end to an hours-long stand-off at the centre, during which automatic gunfire was heard and one security officer ...

MNA International Desk: Thailand saw a record 38.27 million tourists in 2018, up 7.5 per cent from the previous year, the Tourism Ministry said on Monday. The ministry expects the number of tourist visiting the country this year to increase by 7.5, reports Reuters. The country’s December tourist arrivals were 3.85 million, the tourism ministry said in a statement. For 2019, the ministry expects 41.1 million tourists to spend 2.21 trillion baht (53.15 billion pounds). The number of visitors from China – Thailand’s biggest source of tourist – is projected to rise 11 per cent to 11.69 million, it said. ...

MNA International Desk: Thailand’s long-delayed general election to end military rule will have to be postponed from its February 24 date and will likely be held in March, two officials in the Election Commission said on Tuesday. The Election Commission of Thailand has not announced the postponement, but two senior election officials told Reuters it was impossible to hold the polls on Feb. 24, as announced last month. The military junta that has ruled for nearly five years had earlier suggested a one-month delay because of scheduling clashes with the coronation of the king in May. “The February 24 election ...

MNA International Desk: Thailand has revoked the passports of ousted premier Yingluck Shinawatra, who has yet to publicly emerge since she slipped out of the country two months ago ahead of judgement day in her negligence trial, officials said Tuesday. The former prime minister, whose elected government was toppled in a 2014 coup, was sentenced to five years in prison in absentia last month for failing to stop graft in a rice policy. The verdict, which closed the curtain on her political career, was lambasted by Yingluck’s supporters as a junta-backed effort to boot her out of Thai politics for ...

MNA International Desk: Thailand’s ousted former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra was handed a five-year prison sentence on Wednesday after the country’s highest court found her guilty of negligence in the management of a rice subsidy scheme. Yingluck was due to hear the verdict on Aug. 25, but failed to show up, surprising hundreds of supporters who had gathered at the court, reported news agency. Aides said she had fled Thailand, fearing a harsh sentence. Last month, Reuters reported that she had escaped to Dubai, where her brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, owns a home. Yingluck, who swept to power ...

MNA Business Desk: The government has cleared a proposal to buy 50,000 tonnes rice from a Thai company through international tender, reported news agency. The cabinet committee on government purchase approved the proposal to buy the parboiled rice at $438 per tonne at a meeting chaired by Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Wednesday. Siam Rice Trading (Thai) Company Limited will supply the rice at Tk 1.81 billion as the lowest bidder, Additional Cabinet Secretary Mostafizur Rahman told reporters after the meeting. The crisis has pushed rice prices through the roof. Even the price of rice at the government’s Open Market ...

MNA International Desk: A wave of coordinated blasts rattled multiple cities across southern Thailand, killed at least four people and injured dozens more. Among the wounded were 11 foreigners in the seaside resort town of Hua Hin. Among the four deceased – two in Hua Hin, one in the island gateway town of Surat Thani, and one in southern Trang, with many others injured. There were also blasts on the tourist island of Phuket. “This is not a terrorist attack. It is just local sabotage that is restricted to limited areas and provinces,” national police deputy spokesman Piyapan Pingmuang said ...

MNA Business Desk: Thai officials and business front-runners have recognized Bangladesh’s efforts to scheme the country in Bangkok, and said Bangladesh can be Thailand’s ‘west gate’ to connect with South Asia. Bangladesh in the first-ever trade and venture expo in Thailand has tried to present its competences as a ‘manufacturing hub’ while looking for a ‘gateway’ to the ASEAN economy. Chen Namchaisiri, chairman of Federation of Thai Industries, at a panel discussion on Tuesday said the expo gave a “good opportunity” to Thai companies to get to know the country better. He acknowledged Bangladesh’s desire, and said Thailand could act ...