Thailand Stories

Thai farmers use a press to flatten rubber sheets at a farm in Thailand’s southern province of Narathiwat on September 2, 2010. Thailand on September 2 ordered the central bank to keep a close eye on the baht and ‘prepare measures’ after the currency soared to a 29-month high against the US dollar, Finance Minister Korn…

A view of the Map Ta Phut industrial estate in Rayong province, eastern Thailand in this August 31, 2010 file photo. In a decision that will likely be cheered by foreign investors, a Thai court Thursday ruled that nearly all the projects at Map Ta Phut industrial park can resume operations, despite environmental and health …

Members of a Thai medical team give ‘first-aid’ to injured passengers during a ‘full-scale emergency’ exercise at Don Muang airport in Bangkok on August 31, 2010. In 2009 there were 28 fatal airline accidents and 749 fatalities across all sectors of the global airline industry, which compares respectively with 34 and 583 for the previous year. (Getty Images) A Thai fireman carries an ‘injured’ man…

Thai forensic policemen inspect the site of a grenade attack at the National Broadcasting Services of Thailand (NBT) in Bangkok August 31, 2010. A grenade exploded in the compound of theThai state-run broadcaster on Tuesday but no one was injured, police said, the fourth mysterious blast in five weeks …

Thai forensic policemen inspect the site of a grenade attack at the National Broadcasting Services of Thailand (NBT) in Bangkok August 31, 2010. A grenade exploded in the compound of theThai state-run broadcaster on Tuesday but no one was injured, police said, the fourth mysterious blast in five weeks during a state of emergency in Bangkok. (Reuters)…

Montenegro’s President Milo Djukanovic (R) talks to Thailand’s Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya during their meeting in Podgorica August 30, 2010. Kasit met today with high-ranking Montenegrin officials in a bid to boost bilateral cooperation and relations. (Reuters) More Thailand pictures can be found at www.ThaiPhotoBlogs.com .

Members of Thai special police unit carry their weapons as they ride motorcycles during an exercise in Yala province, about 1,084 km (674 miles) south of Bangkok. The troubled rubber-rich provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat were part of a Muslim sultanate annexed a century ago by the predominantly Buddhist Thailand. About 80 percent…

Thai veterinarian Phimchanok Srongmongkul holds a baby tiger cub after feeding at the Wildlife Health Unit at the Department of National Parks in Bngkok Thailand on Friday, Aug. 27, 2010. Thai authorities found the baby tiger cub that had been drugged and hidden among stuffed toy tigers in the suitcase of a woman flying from Bangkok to Iran, …

Alla Bout, wife of suspected Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout, speaks during a news conference at Foreign Correspondent Club Friday, Aug. 27, 2010 in Bangkok, Thailand. Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva delivered a stern message to Washington on Wednesday that the extradition…

Umnuayporn Tongprapai gestures as she is transported on a forklift to an ambulance in Bangkok, Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010. The 603-pound (274-kilogram) woman believed to be the heaviest in Thailand left her apartment for the first time in three years Thursday with the help of Bangkok city hall and the forklift. (AP) A Thai…

A second British man has been arrested in Thailand for alleged involvement in violent anti-government “Red Shirt” protests earlier this year, police said Thursday. Keith Wayne Bush, 49, from Manchester was arrested on arson charges at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on Wednesday after arriving on a flight from the United Arab Emirates, according to immigration police. His Thai wife…

A guard stands holding a weapon at Bangkwang Central Prison where suspected Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout is being held in Nonthaburi Province, on the outskirts of Bangkok August 25, 2010. A Thai appeals court ruled on Friday that Bout can be extradited to the United States to face terrorism charges. The extradition of…

Rakesh Saxena, center, is helped to get up from his wheelchair upon arrival at the criminal court in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2010. Rakesh, a former adviser to the Bangkok Bank of Commerce whose failure helped spark the 1997 Asian financial meltdown, was formally charged …

Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada (L) lays a bouquet of flowers during a remembrance ceremony for slain Japanese cameraman Hiroyuki Muramoto at the site where he was killed near Democracy Monument in Bangkok on August 23, 2010. Okada is on an official visit in Thailand aimed at strengthening bilateral ties between…

Thai Siriporn Paiboon, left, throws a metal ball during practice for petanque Wednesday, Aug 18, 2010 in Bangkok, Thailand. A form of lawn bowling, petanque is a 100-year-old French sport usually associated with the pastis-sozzled old men of provinces. But a curious thing is happening. From the cool canal quays of…

The Pathumwan District Court on Friday ordered the release of Australian Conor David Purcell after he confessed to violating the emergency decree, taking into account time already served behind bars. (AP) Full story > > More Thailand pictures can be found at www.ThaiPhotoBlogs.com .

Alleged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout (L) is escorted by policemen as he arrives for a hearing at the Criminal Court in Bangkok on August 20, 2010. A Thai appeals court granted a request by the United States for the extradition of Viktor Bout, an alleged Russian…

Krittaya Brown, a daughter of a Thai Tourist Police officer, teaches Tourist Police officers how to dance in Chiang Mai, north of Bangkok. Photo: AP Full story > > > More Thailand pictures can be found at www.ThaiPhotoBlogs.com .

Miss Thailand Fonthip Watcharatrakul poses in her national costume at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada August 16, 2010. The Miss Universe 2010 pageant will take place in Las Vegas on August 23. REUTERS/Patrick Prather More Thailand pictures can be found at www.ThaiPhotoBlogs.com .

Thai pathology expert Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand arrived in Malaysia to complete her long-awaited testimony in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest today. The Thai Central Institute of Forensic Science director was met on arrival yesterday afternoon at the KL International Airport by officials from the Selangor government and…