Thailand

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Thai Billionaire Behind Red Bull Dead at 89

Chaleo Yoovidhya's parents sold ducks, fruit to survive

(Newser) - The Thai billionaire who sparked the worldwide "energy drink" craze and co-founded Red Bull has died of natural causes in Bangkok, the AP reports. Chaleo Yoovidhya was 89. Born to a Thai mother and Chinese father who sold ducks and fruit to survive, Chaelo died as Thailand's third-richest...

Iranian Hit Squad Hid Bombs in Radios

Bangkok devices match those used in India, Georgia attacks

(Newser) - The suspected Iranian hit squad busted in Bangkok last week made cheap portable radios into bombs that they intended to use against Israeli targets, authorities say. Experts say the bombs are nearly identical to those attached to vehicles in attacks in India and the republic of Georgia , ABC reports. After...

Iranian Bomb Suspects Partied With Prostitutes

They spent two days at Thai 'sex resort,' say officials

(Newser) - Three Iranians suspected of plotting Bangkok bomb attacks on Israeli diplomats arranged to meet women as they planned their missions—and they weren't 72 virgins . They spent hours over two nights partying with prostitutes at a Thai beach resort in Pattaya, known for its sex industry, say authorities. One...

Male Couple Kisses for 50 Hours
 Male Couple 
 Kisses for 
 50 Hours 
world record
Feb 14, 2012 1:34 PM CST

Male Couple Kisses for 50 Hours

Thai couple breaks world record for longest kiss

(Newser) - A male couple in Thailand spent more than two days kissing to break the Guinness World Record for longest kiss. The competition began Sunday in Pattaya, and ended, fittingly enough, today on Valentine's Day. Couples had to stay in a space measuring one square meter, could only take water...

Iranian Man Blows Off Own Leg in Thai Bombing

Bangkok rocked by series of explosions

(Newser) - An Iranian man blew his own leg off in Bangkok today, as a series of explosions rocked the Thai capital, the New York Times reports. The first blast occurred in the house the man was renting in a residential neighborhood; witnesses say three men who appeared to be foreigners ran...

China, Thailand Applaud Twitter Censorship

Dissidents fear losing free-speech tool

(Newser) - Twitter's controversial decision to allow censorship of tweets on a country-by-country basis has won praise from two of the countries with the busiest censors. In Thailand—ranked 153rd in the world for press freedom because of its strict laws against offending the monarchy—the country's information minister called...

Thai Elephants' New Threat: Poachers After Their Meat

Some Asian cultures believe flesh will boost one's sexual prowess

(Newser) - A new gastronomic fad in Thailand is pushing the country's elephants a step closer to extinction. Poachers, who have historically hunted elephants to obtain their ivory tusks, are now killing the giant mammals and selling their trunks and sexual organs to be eaten as food, reports the AP . Consumption...

US Warns of Possible Terrorist Attack in Bangkok

Citizens urged to be cautious in tourist areas

(Newser) - US citizens visiting Thailand were warned today that terrorists may be planning attacks on tourist areas in Bangkok "in the near future," the Bangkok Post reports. A message from the US embassy urges citizens "to exercise caution when visiting public areas where large groups of Western tourists...

Pocket of Asia Yields 208 New Species—in 1 Year

Mekong region's amazing biodiversity under threat, WWF warns

(Newser) - It's a region that produces a new species every other day: Carnivorous plants that can eat mice, birds, and lizards. An all-female species of lizard that reproduces by self-cloning. Brightly colored geckos bathed in orange, yellow, blue, and green markings. A noseless monkey that looks like it's wearing...

American Gets 2.5 Years for Insulting Thai Royals

Joe Gordon posted links to banned biography of king

(Newser) - A court in Thailand sentenced a US citizen to two and a half years in prison today for defaming the country's royal family by translating excerpts of a locally banned biography of the king and posting them online. The 55-year-old Thai-born American, Joe Gordon, stood calmly with his ankles...

Thailand Flooding: Death Toll Passes 500
 Thai Death Toll Passes 500 
Nov 6, 2011 6:44 AM CST

Thai Death Toll Passes 500

Bangkok orders new evacuations

(Newser) - The nationwide death toll from Thailand's worst floods in half a century climbed past 500 today, as the polluted black water continued its march into Bangkok and authorities ordered a spate of new evacuations in the sprawling capital. Today, Bangkok Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra ordered another wave of evacuations in...

Flood Waters Converge on Downtown Bangkok

As government tries to come up with plans to prevent a repeat

(Newser) - Bangkok residents are growing increasingly restless as floodwaters continue to rise through city streets. Officials are trying to drain the waters through waterways in the city’s eastern and western areas, but that’s prompted protests from residents who say their homes are being sacrificed to protect ritzier downtown properties...

Tens of Thousands Flee Bangkok Floods

Entire city could be flooded by the weekend

(Newser) - Residents are pouring out of Bangkok by bus, plane and train, heeding government warnings to use a special five-day holiday to evacuate parts of the flood-threatened metropolis before a weekend deluge rushes through the city. The evacuation warning applied to only three of Bangkok's 50 districts, but the government...

Bangkok Grapples With Floods
 Bangkok Grapples With Floods 
Oct 25, 2011 5:40 AM CDT

Bangkok Grapples With Floods

High waters close Don Muang airport

(Newser) - Bangkok is slowly being flooded by waters seeping into the Thai capital from the waterlogged center of the country on their way to the Gulf of Thailand. The flooding, the worst the city has seen in at least 70 years, has severed road and rail links and forced the government...

World's Most Cinematic Beaches

Seaside locales that have made it to Hollywood

(Newser) - Ever wondered where filmmakers find those beautiful natural settings? CNN has the scoop on five of the best beaches to have graced the silver screen:
  • The Beach's quasi-utopia was created on Thailand’s Phi Phi Leh Island, a spot in the southern part of the country that has seen
...

US Man Pleads Guilty to Insulting Thai Royals

Joe Gordon faces up to 15 years in prison; plea made in hope of leniency

(Newser) - A Thai-born US citizen pleaded guilty earlier today to charges of insulting Thailand's royal family, reports the AP . Joe Gordon, 54, returned to Thailand in March after living in the United States for about 30 years. He was arrested in May for translating excerpts of a banned biography of...

Hacker Mocks Thai PM— on Her Own Twitter Account

Yingluck Shinawatra 'can't even protect her Twitter account'

(Newser) - A mocking hacker took over the Twitter account of Thailand's recently elected prime minister today, questioning her ability to defend the country if she cannot even secure her own tweets. The unknown hacker ended a series of at least eight postings on the account of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra...

Elephant Wounded by Land Mine

Pa Hae Po is being treated in Thailand

(Newser) - Bad: A 22-year-old male elephant stepped on a land mine in Myanmar and mangled its left foot, reports AP . Worse: He joins three other elephants being treated for the same thing at a facility in Thailand. The Friends of the Asian Elephant group has named the new patient Pa Hae...

Thailand Elects First Female Prime Minister

Yingluck Shinawatra is the sister of ousted former leader

(Newser) - Thai lawmakers elected US-educated businesswoman Yingluck Shinawatra as the country's first female prime minister today, setting the stage for the 44-year-old political novice to take charge of a volatile nation that's been deeply divided since her brother was ousted in a 2006 coup. The vote comes a month...

UN Orders Thai, Cambodian Troops Out of Temple Area

Court tries to end clashes around the Preah Vihear temple

(Newser) - The UN's highest court created a demilitarized zone around a 1,000-year-old temple today on the disputed border between Cambodia and Thailand, and ordered the armed forces from both countries to withdraw. Both countries claimed they were satisfied with the ruling by the International Court of Justice, meant to...

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