PHUKET: A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

smh.com.au A small black dot that will travel across the fiery face of the sun for more than six hours is the centre of attention around the world and in space today. This is the first time that a transit of Venus - a rare celestial event that will not occur again for more than a century - is taking place while there is a spacecraft orbiting Venus.

bangkokpost.com Landslides and flash floods caused by prolonged heavy rain have wreaked havoc in many parts of Chumphon, Ranong and Mae Hong Son provinces. A 500m-long stretch of the Petchkasem Highway linking Ranong with Chumphon near Kra Buri market was closed to all traffic. People living near hillsides and waterways in Uttaradit, Sukhothai, Phetchabun, Chanthaburi, Trat, Chumphon, Ranong and Phang Nga should prepare for heavy rain and flash floods.

wsj.com The fight over Mr Thaksin's return has been building since his sister Yingluck Shinawatra won election as prime minister almost a year ago. As political scientist Thitinan Pongsudhirak wrote last month, she struck a tacit deal with the military and the palace that allows her to rule as long as she doesn't challenge the military's prerogatives and shows no leniency in the prosecution of lese majeste offenses.

nationmultimedia.com Apart from Nasa's proposal to use U-Tapao airport, the US Navy is also interested in using the Royal Thai Navy airfield as a multipurpose facility for humanitarian and disaster-relief operations. The US Navy's plans, which are separate from the US space agency's proposal for a weather-monitoring centre at U-Tapao, are in line with the US Navy's strategy to concentrate the bulk of its forces in the Pacific

nationalpost.com With Luka Rocco Magnotta now in German police custody and poised to face multiple charges in Canada, questions are emerging about whether there should be other legal fallout in the case - notably around Best Gore, the website that initially refused to take down what's believed to be video of the graphic murder of victim Jun Lin.

nytimes.com A state-run newspaper in Myanmar published an analysis expressing concerns that the ''hard-won trust'' between President Thein Sein and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel laureate and opposition leader, could ''vanish'' because of ''anxieties'' in the wake of Ms Aung San Suu Kyi's recent trip to Thailand.

afpAung San Suu Kyi will visit France from June 26 to 29 at the invitation of new President Francois Hollande, the French presidency announced.

wsj.com My country is energy-rich and certainly shouldn't be experiencing electricity blackouts, yet the government sells much of its resources to China and Thailand and uses that money to maintain its disproportionately large military. Burma is quite simply not ready. Investment, particularly in the country's unstable ethnic areas, serves to exacerbate human rights abuses and causes major environmental and social damage.

radioaustralianews.net.au Dozens of protesters rallied in Yangon calling for justice for 10 fellow Muslims killed by an angry mob in a surge in sectarian tensions in Rakhine state, western Burma. Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh, is a flashpoint for tensions.

thesundaily.my Singapore's new long-haul budget carrier Scoot has taken off for the first time, using a novel way of saving fuel -- by replacing its in-built TVs with iPads. The airline made its maiden voyage to Sydney from the city-state late Monday.

smh.com.au Grandmother Frances Macaskill, who punched a passenger in the face during a drunken air rage incident on a Qantas flight to New Zealand has avoided jail, but will have to compensate the airline with $18,245 for its costs in turning the flight around.



TOURISTS looking for an active way to spend a day may find what they are looking for when the Phuket Mountain Bike Hash race returns on June 24. The monthly event, which is typically held on the third Sunday of each month, sees a group of between 35 and 45 foreign and Thai cyclists embarking on a taxing and challenging ride, usually lasting between 90 and 120 minutes. Find out more at phuketmountainbike.com/



metro.co.uk Sir Paul McCartney has confirmed he will be the closing act at next month's opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

telegraph.co.uk This was Scotland's first away rugby Test win over any of the southern hemisphere's big three for almost 30 years. Australia, by contrast, will be devastated by the outcome. Australia 6 Scotland 9

independent.co.uk Manchester United have made their first signing of the summer after confirming they have ''reached agreement'' to buy Shinji Kagawa from Borussia Dortmund. Negotiations have been on-going with the Japan international for a number of weeks.

dailymail.co.uk Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic found themselves playing match points at the same time, on the two main show courts of a drizzly Roland Garros. Federer's proved a relatively simple matter, but four times Djokovic was just one point away from being turfed out of the French Open, and four times he responded like the supreme match player that he is.



THEME for the June 8 IBAP meeting is social networking with members of three Phuket Associations: Skal, GOMS (more about the Grumpy Old Men at andrew-drummond.com) and IBAP. Climax Rooftop Restaurant, Bangla Suites, Patong from 7.10pm.

June 8-10 Laguna Phuket International Marathon

July 18-22 Phuket Raceweek

July 21-22 Toyota motor racing at Saphan Hin, Phuket City

July 1 US Independence Day picnic, Headstart International School of Phuket, from 11am



November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket