Thailand

The Interior Ministry has ordered most border provinces to leave only one international checkpoint open as the country tries to block arrivals to contain the coronavirus outbreak that has caused a sharp jump in cases this week. Key checkpoints to temporary shut are the first Thai-Mayanmar Friendship Bridge in Tak, which will be closed until further notice. The Phu Nam …

Government spokesperson Narumon Pinyosinwat said on Friday Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has asked for cooperation, especially from those living in Bangkok and adjacent provinces, to refrain from going out. As for calls by some people for lockdowns, the spokesperson said measures must be prepared well before time, and those people who earn daily incomes must also be considered. “The prime …

An arrest warrant has been issued for a 23-year-old man for vandalising cars and setting fire to his own house to put pressure on his mother to buy him an expensive motorbike. The Si Sa Ket provincial court on Thursday approved a warran for the arrest of Jetkhati Wonglert, 23, of Muang district, for causing damage to property and offences …

Five vendors have been sentenced to between six months and 18 months in jail for selling face masks at inflated prices while two others have got a suspended jail term and a fine of 25,000 baht each. The seven vendors — one man and six women — were taken to the Criminal Court on Thursday. Named as defendants in a …

Thais abroad who have booked flights back home risk being turned away at check-in if they cannot show a health certificate, which is difficult to get in many countries. Foreign nationals travelling to Thailand need verification of their travel history in the previous 14 days and a health certificate certifying they “pose no risk of being infected by the Coronavirus …

The government will extend the requirement of medical certificates and health insurance from Sunday to cover all visitors to the country regardless of nationalities to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Thailand reported 60 new coronavirus cases, the biggest daily jump in the number of cases so far to take its total infections to 272, the Public Health Ministry said …

The number of dead in Italy surpassed those in China, which again reported no new cases in the outbreak’s initial epicentre. India urged its 1.3 billion citizens to stay indoors and barred all flights from overseas for a week. The US warned Americans not to travel abroad and recommended that those who are overseas come home. US Senate majority leader …

Immigration authorities have moved to quell rumours of impending border checkpoint closures which had prompted Cambodians to cross into Thailand to buy bottled water. Arthit Yakaew, chief of the Aranyaprathet border checkpoint, on Friday denied that the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak would force the border crossing at Aranyaprathet and Ban Khao Din in Khlong Hat district to close. He dismissed the …

The Thai Chamber of Commerce is calling on the government to come up with urgent measures to help “salarymen” after many companies initiated 15-day leave programmes without pay. The group is also asking for cooperation from its members that are struggling from the adverse impact of the coronavirus outbreak to retain their more than 10 million employees as long as …

The army Thursday morning began spraying roads in Bangkok with disinfectant to combat the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Army units have been deployed to carry out the daily cleaning from 1am to 5am until the end of the month. The cleaning operation uses water mixed with disinfectant. The spraying, approved at a high-level meeting of army units chaired by …