nytimes.com A white gunman opened fire at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, before fleeing, the police said, and nine people were killed. The gunman remains at large.

ft.com Denmark went to the polls on Thursday in one of its closest ever elections, one characterised by personal attacks and pledges to clamp down on immigration.

bangkokpost.com The ICAO 'red flags' Thailand for failing to solve significant civil aviation safety concerns, but it's not clear what the effect will be.

afp South Korea reported three more Mers deaths on Thursday, bringing the number of fatalities to 23 and amplifying fears authorities do not have the virus outbreak under control after the WHO criticised their response.

thephuketinsider.com The Banyan Tree affiliated Laguna Lang Co destination resort in Hue Vietnam has made public plans to add a casino to the project.

time.com Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have announced they're donating $5 million to a scholarship fund to help undocumented immigrants in the US attend college.


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



theguardian.com Leicester City have sacked the three footballers who had been accused of taking part in a sexually explicit film featuring humiliating and racist comments on a post-season tour to Thailand - including James Pearson, the son of the club's manager, Nigel Pearson.

Full story
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jun/17/leicester-sack-three-players-racist-thai-orgy

afp An elephant killed a 28-year-old Thai man and injured his colleague as they were eating dinner at a beachside restaurant in eastern Thailand, police said.

Full story
http://www.straitstimes.com/news/asia/south-east-asia/story/elephant-gores-man-death-thailand-beachside-restaurant-20150617

bangkokpost.com As tourism continues to grow, Thailand is facing a growing problem: a shortage of skilled labor in the hospitality industry.

Full story
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/tourism/595476/skilled-labour-shortage-threatens-tourism-tcc



bangkokpost.com The strongest government action against human trafficking won't be in the coming US report - meaning a Tier 3 rating is likely again.

reuters Thousands of ethnic Rohingya are fleeing persecution. Boarding overcrowded boats (and often enduring horrific conditions), they're going to countries scarcely able to help them - or in some cases, frankly, not interested in helping them.

channelnewsasia.com Many Rohingya in Rakhine state told Channel NewsAsia that they are waiting for an opportune moment to flee the troubled region, regardless of the dangers.

bangkokpost.com ''Not allowing Rohingya into Thailand is equivalent to assisting the traffickers,'' said Surapong Kongchantuk of the Lawyers Council of Thailand, adding that many of the boats bringing the Rohingya are Thai-owned.

reuters Pope Francis called for respect for migrants and suggested that ''people and institutions'' who close doors to them should seek forgiveness from God.



Krabi Update A VIDEO posted on YouTube shows the moment a Krabi school ''bus'' collided with another vehicle. The incident appears to have occurred on Monday at an undisclosed location. Children are scattered onto the road.

Full VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=55&v=3CzFCjDxb3c

bangkokpost.com The small group of reform officials recommending legalised gambling and a casino complex for Pattaya have found a powerful ally - the national police chief.

nationmultimedia.com Police chief General Somyot Poompanmoung backed a controversial proposal to permit legal casinos, saying he would open a website to sound out public opinions on the issue. Possible sites include Phuket.

casinonewsdaily.com Laguna Lang Co, developer of the Laguna Lang Co resort in the Vietnamese province of Thua Thien-Hue, announced that it is to move forward with Phase II. Phase IIA of the property, modelled on Laguna Phuket but on a grander scale, is expected to include new accommodations and a casino gambling facility, provided that the developer receives the necessary approval.

Phuket Update Gulu Lalvani, Chairman of Royal Phuket Marina, announced a five-year plan to inject five billion baht in investment to transform the marina into a premier lifestyle destination. A total of 600 rooms are to be added in two hotels over the next five years. One hotel will have ''its own private beach.''

bangkokpost.com Bangkok and popular tourist provinces in the eastern and southern parts of the country - including Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi - are braced for more rain in the days to come.

Agencies Police have shot and killed a tiger that fatally mauled a man after an escape from a flooded zoo in the Georgian capital Tbilisi

bangkokpost.com Chiang Mai police are investigating an incident in which two drunk Australian men, a father and son, were assaulted by unidentified people in the city early Tuesday.

bangkokpost.com Bangkok is the fourth best value destination in the world for a city break, according to TripIndex Cities, an annual TripAdvisor cost comparison study.

bbc.com Serbia's prime minister has said he is ''shocked'' by Hungary's plan to erect a border fence to keep out migrants. Aleksandar Vucic said the four-metre fence was ''not the solution'' to migrants entering Hungary from Serbia.

cnn.com ISIS has claimed responsibility for several bombings that occurred in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa. Sources said at least 24 people were killed.

nytimes.com A Palestinian man who is believed to have taken part in a deadly 1982 attack on a Jewish restaurant in Paris has been arrested in Jordan, officials in Amman and Paris said. Six people, including two Americans, were killed in the attack on the Chez Jo Goldenberg restaurant.

afp A California panel has ruled that a driver for cab service Uber is an employee - a decision with potentially major implications for the global startup.

Kyodo News Major Japanese confectionery maker Ezaki Glico Co said it will begin ice cream sales in Thailand to capitalise on the country's steadily growing ice cream market.

traveller.com.au World's best places to retire: Bangkok, Thailand I like big, crazy, bustling cities where there is always something to do and something to see. Bangkok offers all of that, as well as affordability, reasonably good healthcare, and the chance to rage against the dying of the light with some of the best street food in the world. Hope I can still handle chilli by then.



dailycaller.com A statement released by China's foreign ministry says that China will cease building additional islands, though it plans to complete existing land reclamation efforts.

Try Phuketwan's Asean Today daily:

Full Report http://phuketwan.com/tourism/asean-today-phuket-among-safest-cities-hunt-missing-tanker-mh370-search-scaled-back-border-battles-22673/



theage.com.au Australian swimmer Kylie Palmer's Rio Olympics dream is in serious jeopardy with confirmation she has returned an allegedly positive drug test to FINA. The Olympic gold medallist has withdrawn from the Australian team for the FINA World Championships after accepting a provisional ban for the alleged doping violation, which dates back to 2013.



rferl.org More than 1.5 billion Muslims around the world mark the start of Ramadan June 17, a month of intense prayer, dawn-to-dusk fasting and nightly feasts.

June 20-21 Baba wedding at Old Phuket Town

July 14-16 Trial of Phuketwan journalists at Phuket Provincial Court

July 15-19 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek