Where is everybody? Patong businesses suffering worst high season in 10 years 

By Tanyaluk Sakoot

 

Dancers on Bangla Rd wait for customers to turn up on Wednesday night (Dec 19). Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot
 

PHUKET: Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket Office Director Kanokkittika Kritwutikon this week struck out at claims online that Phuket is suffering an incredibly low number of visitors during the current tourism ‘high season’.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074312-where-is-everybody-patong-businesses-suffering-worst-high-season-in-10-years/

 

Chinese tourists give Phuket a miss after boat tragedy, even as Thai authorities tighten safety measures

By Pichayada Promchertchoo

 

The salvaged vessel of Phoenix PC Diving, which capsized and sank off the popular resort island Phuket on July 5, 2018, killing 47 Chinese tourists. (Photo: Pichayada Promchertchoo)

 

PHUKET: On Jul 5 this year, as the world was transfixed on a cave in northern Thailand where a junior football team was trapped, a tragedy was unfolding in its southern waters.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074312-where-is-everybody-patong-businesses-suffering-worst-high-season-in-10-years/

 

U.S., Canada call on China to release detained Canadians

 

Michael Kovrig, an employee with the International Crisis Group and former Canadian diplomat appears in this photo provided by the International Crisis Group in Brussels, Belgium, December 11, 2018. Courtesy CRISISGROUP/Julie David de Lossy/Handout via REUTERS

 

WASHINGTON/VANCOUVER (Reuters) - The United States joined Canada on Friday in calling on Beijing to release two Canadians detained in what are widely believed to be tit-for-tat arrests related to the high-profile detention in Canada of an executive of a major Chinese corporation.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074314-us-canada-call-on-china-to-release-detained-canadians/

Britain says Reuters journalists jailed in Myanmar are innocent

By Guy Faulconbridge

 

Britain's Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is seen with a copy of "Jay Jay the Journalist" written by Wa Lone, one of two Reuters reporters currently imprisoned in Myanmar, whilst working in his office in London, Britain, December 20, 2018. Picture taken December 20, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Friday that two Reuters journalists jailed in Myanmar on charges of breaking the country's Official Secrets Act were innocent and that Britain had serious concerns about due process in the case.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074316-britain-says-reuters-journalists-jailed-in-myanmar-are-innocent/

 

Turkey says it will take over fight against IS after U.S. pull-out

By Ece Toksabay and Dahlia Nehme

 

FILE PHOTO: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters in Konya, Turkey, December 17, 2018. Cem Oksuz/Presidential Press Office/Handout via REUTERS

 

ISTANBUL/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Turkey will take over the fight against Islamic State militants in Syria as the United States withdraws its troops, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday, in the latest upheaval wrought by Washington's abrupt policy shift.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074317-turkey-says-it-will-take-over-fight-against-is-after-us-pull-out/

 

JD.com CEO will not face assault charges in Minnesota

By Lawrence Delevingne and Koh Gui Qing

 

FILE PHOTO: JD.com founder Richard Liu poses during a Reuters interview in Hong Kong, China, June 9, 2017. REUTERS/Bobby Yip/File Photo

 

(Reuters) - Minnesota prosecutors will not charge the billionaire chief executive officer of China's JD.com Inc, Richard Liu, after he was accused of rape by a University of Minnesota student during a recent U.S. visit, authorities said on Friday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074318-jdcom-ceo-will-not-face-assault-charges-in-minnesota/

 

Fiancé of missing Colorado woman arrested for her murder

By Keith Coffman

 

Patrick Frazee, 32, appears in a booking photo provided by the Woodland Park Police Department in Woodland Park, Colorado, U.S., December 21, 2018. Woodland Park Police Department/Handout via REUTERS

 

DENVER (Reuters) - The fiancé of a 29-year-old Colorado woman who vanished nearly a month ago from a small mountain town was arrested on Friday on murder charges in her disappearance, though investigators have yet to locate the young mother's body, police said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074319-fiancé-of-missing-colorado-woman-arrested-for-her-murder/

 

Dancing FBI agent pleads guilty to accidentally shooting Denver bar patron

By Keith Coffman

 

FILE PHOTO: FBI agent Chase Bishop appears in a booking photo released by the Denver District Attorney's Office, in Denver, Colorado, June 12, 2018. Denver District Attorney's Office/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

 

DENVER (Reuters) - An ex-FBI agent who accidentally shot and wounded a Denver bar patron in June after performing a dance-floor back flip pleaded guilty on Friday to misdemeanor assault under a plea deal that spares him from serving jail time, prosecutors said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074322-dancing-fbi-agent-pleads-guilty-to-accidentally-shooting-denver-bar-patron/

 

U.N. tells UK: Allow Assange to leave Ecuador embassy freely

 

FILE PHOTO - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is seen on the balcony of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, Britain, May 19, 2017. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

 

GENEVA (Reuters) - U.N. rights experts called on British authorities on Friday to allow WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to leave the Ecuador embassy in London without fear of arrest or extradition.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074323-un-tells-uk-allow-assange-to-leave-ecuador-embassy-freely/

'Tallest Christmas tree in Northeast' lit with 30,000 bulbs

By The Nation

 

 

The “tallest Christmas tree in the Northeast” was lit in front of Central Plaza Nakhon Ratchasima on Friday night.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074324-tallest-christmas-tree-in-northeast-lit-with-30000-bulbs/

 

Tambon in Ayutthaya hit by blackout after truck accident

By The Nation

 

Electricity was cut off in a tambon on Saturday morning when a trailer truck crashed onto its side and knocked down nine power poles in Ayutthaya's Nakhon Luang district.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074325-tambon-in-ayutthaya-hit-by-blackout-after-truck-accident/

 

170,000 meth pills found under Udon Thani bridge

By The Nation

 

Villagers found a large plastic bag containing 170,000 methamphetamine pills in a canal in Udon Thani's Muang district on Friday night.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074326-170000-meth-pills-found-under-udon-thani-bridge/

 

Plea for help for bed-ridden mother, son in Samut Prakan

By The Nation

 

Neighbours and officials of a condominium in Samut Prakan have called for government agencies to step in to help an elderly mother and her son who have been bed-ridden for months.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074327-plea-for-help-for-bed-ridden-mother-son-in-samut-prakan/

 

Line bulks up in e-commerce with purchase of Sellsuki

By The Nation Weekend 

 

 

LINE Thailand has acquired the Sellsuki Thai startup to expand its e-commerce business and demonstrate its commitment to supporting startups. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074328-line-bulks-up-in-e-commerce-with-purchase-of-sellsuki/

 

Krating to put skills to use at Kasikorn tech unit

By The Nation Weekend 

 

 

The startup godfather, Ruangroj Poonpol, also known as “Krating”, is officially moving into the chair at Kasikorn Business Technology Group (KBTG) by January 1. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074329-krating-to-put-skills-to-use-at-kasikorn-tech-unit/

 

Immigration police return lost wallet to Malaysian tourist in Yala

By The Nation

 

Immigration police returned a wallet with cash and credit cards to a Malaysian tourist on Saturday morning after he dropped it in front of an immigration counter on Friday night.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074331-immigration-police-return-lost-wallet-to-malaysian-tourist-in-yala/

 

Video: A new dimension in polite armed robbery - Lotus staff shocked in Udon

 

Image: 77Jowo.com

 

A robber armed with a knife went into an Udon Thani branch of Lotus Express and wai-ed the sales staff. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074357-video-a-new-dimension-in-polite-armed-robbery-lotus-staff-shocked-in-udon/

Video: The horrific end of the Petty Officer on the Harley

 

Image: Sanook

 

CCTV footage from Sattahip on Thursday showed a Harley Davidson driven at great speed into a pick-up that was completing a U-turn. Both rider and driver were Navy men.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074362-video-the-horrific-end-of-the-petty-officer-on-the-harley/

Chiang Mai Governor: Thai actor may have been "mistaken" about his 600 baht "rot daeng" trip

 

Image: Manager

 

Manager reported a different angle on the story in which other Thai media had said that the governor of Chiang Mai was reining in the infamous "rot daeng" or song thaews of the northern Thai city. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074363-chiang-mai-governor-thai-actor-may-have-been-mistaken-about-his-600-baht-rot-daeng-trip/

Police arrest man and woman over Gatwick drone disruption

By Kate Holton

 

An arrivals board in the South Terminal building at Gatwick Airport, after the airport reopened to flights following its forced closure because of drone activity, in Gatwick, Britain, December 21, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Police have arrested a man and a woman after rogue drone operators crippled London's Gatwick Airport for three days by repeatedly flying onto the airfield, sparking a major security response.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074364-police-arrest-man-and-woman-over-gatwick-drone-disruption/

 

Prosecutors close Steven Seagal sex assault inquiry without charges

By Alex Dobuzinskis

 

U.S. actor Steven Seagal talks to the media in Uzunu, 40 km (24 miles) south of Bucharest November 17, 2013. REUTERS/Bogdan Cristel/File Photo

 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles prosecutors said on Friday they were declining to bring a criminal case against actor Steven Seagal stemming from an allegation that he sexually assaulted a minor in 2002, citing California's statute of limitations.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074374-prosecutors-close-steven-seagal-sex-assault-inquiry-without-charges/

 

Rock and sausage roll - blogger dad's novelty song is UK Christmas no.1

 

Perennial chart-topper Ariana Grande has lost the race to top the British singles chart at Christmas - to a blogger who writes about fatherhood and sings about sausage rolls on Friday (December 21)

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Perennial chart-topper Ariana Grande has lost the race to top the British singles chart at Christmas - to a blogger who posts about fatherhood and sings about sausage rolls.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074375-rock-and-sausage-roll-blogger-dads-novelty-song-is-uk-christmas-no1/

Audrey Geisel, widow of Dr. Seuss, dies at age 97

 

FILE PHOTO: Audrey Geisel, widow of Dr. Seuss author Theodor Geisel, poses at the premeire of Jim Carrey's movie, Dr. Seuss' "How The Grinch Stole Christmas," November 8, 2000 in Los Angeles./File Photo

 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Audrey Geisel, the widow of beloved children's book author Dr. Seuss and an avid promoter of his legacy, died this week at her California home at age 97, a representative confirmed on Friday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074376-audrey-geisel-widow-of-dr-seuss-dies-at-age-97/

WADA denied Moscow lab data access, leaving Russia facing ban

By Steve Keating

 

FILE PHOTO: A sign is on display outside the office of Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) in Moscow, Russia March 28, 2018. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

 

TORONTO (Reuters) - Russia's Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) is again on the verge of suspension after a World Anti-Doping Agency inspection team visiting a Moscow laboratory was denied access to raw data to complete its full reinstatement, WADA said on Friday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074377-wada-denied-moscow-lab-data-access-leaving-russia-facing-ban/

 

To continue:

 

Thailand Live Sunday 23 Dec 2018

 

https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1074392-thailand-live-sunday-23-dec-2018/