Phuket Update Singer Adam Levine of popular American group Maroon 5 is reported to have been spotted at Phuket airport last night on his way for a private Andaman coast holiday in Thailand.

bbc.com DNA from a garden hoe allegedly used to kill two British tourists on a Thai island does not match samples taken from two men accused of the killings, a court in the country has heard.

wsj.com Singaporeans voted Friday in a general election that poses the broadest challenge to the ruling People's Action Party since the city-state gained independence 50 years ago.

time.com A professional downhill skateboard racer, Zak Maytum of Boulder, Colorado, stars in video of himself - filmed from behind - as he flies down a road at 112 kph.
http://time.com/4026681/skateboard-racer-downhill-70mph-colorado-slope/

nationmultimedia.com The mastermind behind the fatal bomb blast in Bangkok arrived in Bangladesh a day before the August 17 blast and left for China after two weeks, police said.


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



nationmultimedia.com The Tourism Council of Thailand now expects 30 million international tourist arrivals this year, up from its projection of 28.8 million. TCT president Ittirit Kinglake said 8.1 million international tourists were expected to visit the country in the final quarter, up by 9.2 percent from same time last year.

bangkopkpost.com Rights groups are urging the government to stop holding trials of civilians in military courts. They reiterated their calls after Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced that the suspected Erawan shrine bombers would see their cases handled by a civilian court.

nationmultimedia.com A suspect arrested over the deadly Bangkok bomb attack allegedly confessed to having paid immigration police more than 21,000 baht in bribes each time he travelled in and out of Thailand, the national police chief said. Pol General Somyot Poompanmuang, who will retire at the end of this month, blames corrupt officials for paving the way for the bloody bomb attack in the heart of Bangkok last month.



cnn.com Thai police have said one of the suspects in custody over last month's deadly shrine bombing in Bangkok has a Chinese passport and that he's from the country's Xinjiang region. Yusufu Meerailee was arrested last week trying to flee across the Thai border into Cambodia - he has since confessed to carrying a rucksack that contained the bomb that killed 20 people at the Erawan Shrine.



nationmultimedia.com Phuket enjoyed a huge increase in arrival numbers in the first half of 2015 but it did not experience a corresponding increase in revenue, while Samui earned much more revenue with less growth, according to C9 Hotelworks. Among Phuket's top five geographic source markets of China, Russia, Australia, South Korea and Britain, China was the leader with double-digit growth of 37 percent, while the other four moved backwards.
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bangkokpost.com With two weeks left on Europe's yellow card, activists say the campaign against illegal fishing has made only a bit of progress, but maybe not enough.

Phuket Update Thailand has just six international-standard marinas of any significant size, four in Phuket, one in Krabi and one in Pattaya, yet the country has over 3000km of coastline. Authorities have to address the regulatory framework and redefine key terms in law to reflect the 21st century nature of Thailand's marine industry, says advocate Duncan Worthington.

nationmultimedia.com A Thai commits suicide every two hours, with the youngest recorded victim 10 years old and the oldest 93. The Public Health Ministry revealed the alarming statistic yesterday to mark World Suicide Prevention Day, and recommended a guideline on how to cut down on the numbers.

Phuket Update More than 300 officers from the Royal Thai Navy's Third Area Command and forest departments of Krabi, Phang Nga and Phuket cut down illegal palm oil and rubber trees covering an area totalling 82 rai within the Ban Pa Kanon National Park so it can be replanted and restored as national forest.

ft.com The US will take in at least 10,000 refugees from Syria over the next year, a sixfold increase over the current year, the White House said.

reuters Unprecedented rain in Japan unleashed heavy floods that tore houses from their foundations, uprooted trees and forced some 150,000 people from their homes, local media reported.

telegraph.co.uk Denmark became the latest flashpoint in Europe's migration crisis as the country gave free passage to refugees trying to reach Sweden, drawing angry accusations that it was ripping up EU rules on asylum registrations.

reuters German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Facebook to do more against racist comments and hate posts, in comments due to be published in a regional newspaper on Friday. Germany is expecting a record-breaking influx of refugees this year.

afp Journalists and other public figures can now offer live video to their followers on Facebook, which announced plans to broaden the streaming service. The move will allow journalists to report live from a news scene and host questions from followers on Facebook.

voanews.com Top US intelligence and security officials say Russia's ramped up presence in Syria should come as little surprise though they remain concerned about Moscow's increasingly aggressive posture.

nationmultimedia.com Muse frontman Matt Bellamy: ''We're very excited about it. I've actually been to Thailand before - Bangkok for maybe one day and I had some really good holidays on Phuket, a very relaxing place, and I loved the people. The people were very friendly and Thai food is some of my favorite food.''



reuters Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi urged voters to opt for ''real change'' in the first general election since the end of military rule. Thousands of supporters gave Suu Kyi a rapturous welcome in towns in the sparsely populated state of Kayah on the Thai border.



reuters Top big-wave surfer Shawn Dollar has broken his neck while surfing in dangerous conditions off the central coast of California and remained hospitalised, his management company said.

reuters The build-up to Saturday's welterweight fight between Floyd Mayweather jr and Andre Berto has been rocked by suggestions of a doping violation four months ago, an allegation flatly denied by Mayweather.



Until September 11 Asian Weightlifting Championships

Until September 12 Por Tor (Hungry Ghost) Festival

September Quicksilver surf carnival at Patong beach

October 15-23 Phuket Vegetarian Festival

November Patong Festival

November 20 Laguna Phuket Triathlon

November 25 Loy Kratong festival

November 29 Challenge Laguna Phuket 2015

November 29 Phuket King's Cup Regatta

December 5 HM The King's Birthday

December 26 Tsunami memorial ceremonies




January 7-10 Phuket International Boat Show