Mrs. Sasipatchara Sinsamosorn, director of Patong Prathan Khiriwat School, who died after being shot during a hostage incident in Hat Yai
HAT YAI — Tributes have poured in for Mrs. Sasipatchara Sinsamosorn, director of Patong Prathan Khiriwat School, who died after being shot while volunteering to take a student’s place during a hostage incident in Hat Yai district, Songkhla province.
Dr. Wiroj Yommuang, director of Hat Yai Hospital, said on 12 February 2026 that Mrs. Sasipatchara passed away at 02:00 despite doctors’ full efforts to save her.
She died from massive blood loss and a loss of blood clotting function due to severe internal injuries, he said. Medical staff carried out emergency treatment to the fullest extent possible.
The incident occurred when an 18-year-old man, who had seized a firearm from a police officer, stormed the school and opened fire. Mrs. Sasipatchara was seriously wounded. A 14-year-old female student was also shot. The suspect later held students hostage before police surrounded the area and secured his surrender.
According to Ms. Darawan Chaisuwan, deputy director of Rattaphum Wittaya School and a former colleague, the gunman had initially taken a female student hostage. Mrs. Sasipatchara negotiated with him and asked to take the student’s place.
“In that moment, with the spirit of a teacher, she stepped forward to protect her student,” Ms. Darawan said.
Mrs. Sasipatchara was shot shortly after volunteering to replace the student. Despite intensive medical efforts, she succumbed to her injuries.
Online users across Thailand have praised her actions, describing her as a selfless educator who sacrificed her life to protect her pupils.
Mrs. Sasipatchara held a Master of Education degree in educational administration and had dedicated her career to advancing education. She had served as director of Patong Prathan Khiriwat School since 2020.
SURAT THANI — 12 February 2026, A 3.2-magnitude earthquake struck Ban Ta Khun district in southern Thailand, part of a cluster of nine tremors recorded over two days, officials said.
The Department of Mineral Resources’ Earthquake Operations Centre reported at 08.30 on 12 February that nine earthquakes measuring between 1.9 and 3.2 occurred from 11-12 February 2026 in tambon Khao Phang, Ban Ta Khun district.
The strongest quake, with a magnitude of 3.2, struck at a depth of 2 kilometres at 02.07 on 12 February.
Authorities said the tremors were caused by movement along the Khlong Marui fault zone, which runs in a northeast-southwest direction and is characterised as a left-lateral strike-slip fault.
No damage has been reported. Officials said further details would be provided if available.
The suspect (cyan) is brought to the scene of the crime to reenact the shooting by police
PHAYAO — 12 February 2026, A Phayao shooting suspect was arrested after allegedly setting fire to a grocery shop and firing more than eight rounds at his father-in-law in Pong district, leaving the victim critically injured.
Reporters said CCTV footage captured the moment the suspect set fire to the front of the grocery store before firing multiple shots at his father-in-law, leaving him seriously injured.
The suspect, outlined in red, seen moments before entering the shop to set it on fire
The injured man was identified as Mr. Manop Unruen. The suspect was named as Mr. Banhan Lansaengkaew.
After the shooting, the suspect fled the scene in a white Chevrolet pickup truck without licence plates.
Preliminary investigations indicate the incident stemmed from a family dispute. The suspect had reportedly argued with his wife, who then returned to her father’s home. When the suspect followed but failed to find her, he allegedly set fire to the front of the shop during the early evening before returning with a 9 mm handgun and firing more than eight shots at his father-in-law. One bullet pierced the victim’s abdomen, leaving him in critical condition.
The victim, outlined in red on the left, on the ground after the shooting behind a store rack, and the white getaway truck, outlined in red on the right
Police launched a manhunt and later found the suspect’s vehicle parked along a village road after it ran out of fuel. Officers surrounded the vehicle and persuaded him to surrender.
A search of the pickup uncovered a 9 mm handgun concealed in the right-side door panel. The weapon was seized as evidence and the suspect was taken for a crime reconstruction.
At the scene, investigators found eight 9 mm shell casings and fire damage inside the shop. Police collected forensic evidence and initially charged the suspect with attempted premeditated murder, attempted arson and unlawful possession of a firearm.
SA KAEO — 12 February 2026, Thai border forces arrested three Chinese men who allegedly fled a crackdown in Cambodia and illegally crossed into Thailand through a natural border passage, officials said.
Burapha Task Force commander Col. Chainarong Kasi said troops from the Aranyaprathet Task Force (Ranger Company 1204) were patrolling to prevent illegal activities near a natural pathway in a sugarcane field between checkpoints A.66 and A.67 in Ban Non Khilek village, Phan Suek subdistrict, Aranyaprathet district, about 120 metres from the border.
During the patrol, officers spotted three Chinese men walking across the border through the natural channel. The officers identified themselves, conducted a search and detained the men. None had valid travel documents to enter Thailand.
In initial questioning, the men said they had travelled from Cambodia, where they had previously run a medium-sized retail business. They said they decided to enter Thailand illegally to look for a location to open a shop in Bangkok. One of the three said he planned to return to China.
The men told authorities they had each paid a Cambodian broker 5,000 yuan (about 22,560 baht) to be smuggled into Thailand. No smuggler was found at the time of arrest.
The suspects were taken to Ranger Company 1204 for further questioning and investigation with Sa Kaeo immigration officers before being handed over to investigators at Khlong Nam Sai police station for legal proceedings.
Police officers secure the area outside Phatong Prathankhiriwat School in Hat Yai on 11 February 2026 following a hostage incident.
HAT YAI — An 18-year-old gunman shot and wounded a school director and held more than 300 students hostage at a school in Hat Yai district on 11 February 2026 before police shot and arrested him, authorities said.
The incident occurred at about 16:30 at Phatong Prathankhiriwat School in Phatong subdistrict. Several people were injured, but the exact number was not immediately confirmed.
Police identified the suspect as Khemanan Kescharoen, 18, a resident of Hat Yai.
Investigators said that prior to the school attack, officers from Thung Lung Police Station had responded to a report of an 18-year-old man allegedly attempting to assault his mother at a house near the school. While officers were trying to calm the situation, the suspect allegedly seized an M4 rifle from police and fled into the school compound.
He reportedly approached the security booth and attempted to shoot a security guard, but the weapon malfunctioned, allowing the guard to escape.
The suspect then forced students to take him to the school director and fired two shots, wounding the director. Police later evacuated the injured director to hospital. The director’s condition was not disclosed.
Authorities said more than 300 students were held inside a classroom building at one point during the standoff. Other students were unable to leave the premises.
Hat Yai police, special operations officers and rescue workers cordoned off the area and evacuated those in safe zones while negotiators were deployed. During the standoff, the suspect reportedly fired intermittently and used a loudspeaker to warn police not to enter.
At about 18:30, police shot the suspect and took him into custody. Authorities said the situation was brought under control and all students were safely evacuated.
A Google Street View image shows Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, where a deadly shooting left 10 people dead.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — A shooting at a school in British Columbia left eight dead including a woman whom police believe to be the shooter, while two more people were found dead at a nearby home, Canadian authorities said Tuesday.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said more than 25 people are injured, including two who were airlifted to hospital with life-threatening injuries, after the shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School.
School shootings are rare in Canada.
The town of Tumbler Ridge in the Canadian Rockies is more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) north of Vancouver, near the border with Alberta. The provincial government website lists Tumbler Ridge Secondary School as having 175 students from Grades 7 to 12.
British Columbia Premier David Eby told reporters that police officers reached the school within two minutes.
They found seven people dead, local police said in a statement, including a suspect who appeared to have died of a “self-inflicted injury.” An eighth person died while being transported to a hospital, and two more were found dead at a home the authorities believe was connected to the attack.
RCMP Superintendent Ken Floyd told reporters that investigators had identified a female suspect but would not release a name, and that the shooter’s motive remained unclear. He added that police are still investigating how the victims are connected to the shooter.
Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darryl Krakowka said the whole community is grieving.
“I broke down,” he said, saying it was “devastating” to learn how many had died in the community of 2,700, which he called a “big family.”
“I have lived here for 18 years,” Krakowka said “I probably know every one of the victims.”
Pastor George Rowe of the Tumbler Ridge Fellowship Baptist Church went to the recreation center where the victims’ families were awaiting more information.
“It was not a pretty sight. Families are still waiting to hear if it’s their child that’s deceased and because of protocol and procedure the investigating team is very careful in releasing names,” Rowe said. “The big thing tonight was my having to walk away and the families still waiting to find out. It is so difficult. Other pastors and counselors are there so they are not alone.”
Rowe once taught at the high school and his three children graduated from there.
“To walk through the corridors of that school will never be the same again,” he said.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a social media post that he was devastated by the shooting in Tumbler Ridge.
“I join Canadians in grieving with those whose lives have been changed irreversibly today, and in gratitude for the courage and selflessness of the first responders who risked their lives to protect their fellow citizens,” he wrote.
Carney’s office said he is suspending a planned trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia and Munich, Germany. He was set to announce a long-awaited defense industrial strategy in Halifax on Wednesday before heading to Europe for the Munich Security Conference.
Eby, the province’s premier, told reporters he had spoken to Carney after what he called the “unimaginable tragedy.”
“I know it’s causing us all to hug our kids a little bit tighter tonight,” he said. “I’m asking the people of British Columbia to look after the people of Tumbler Ridge tonight.”
Canada’s government has responded to previous mass shootings with gun control measures, including a recently broadened ban on all guns it considers assault weapons.
Tuesday’s shootings were Canada’s deadliest rampage since 2020, when a gunman in Nova Scotia killed 13 people and set fires that left another nine dead.
Dash cam footage shows the moment the pickup owner confronts the alleged car thief after tracking the vehicle via GPS.
KORAT — A 61-year-old man in Nakhon Ratchasima rammed his vehicle into a suspected car thief after tracking his stolen pickup truck via GPS, but the suspect managed to flee.
The incident occurred in Ban Tha Yiam village, Kut Bot subdistrict, Soeng Sang district, on 11 February.
Kuekrit Suetrong said he discovered his Ford pickup missing from in front of his home at around 5:00. Initially believing his son had taken the vehicle to work, he later realised it had been stolen after confirming all family members were still at home.
Using the vehicle’s GPS tracker, he found the pickup moving about seven kilometres away. He and his son drove to track it down and eventually located it parked along a main road, where a man was allegedly changing the licence plates.
Kuekrit said he attempted to ram the suspect’s vehicle to stop him but hesitated to confront the man directly, unsure whether he was armed and noting the area was isolated. The suspect escaped unharmed.
He said he recognised the suspect as a former customer who had stayed at his resort several times and had presented himself as a friendly acquaintance.
Kuekrit was able to recover his pickup truck. A motorcycle believed to have been stolen and used in the theft was also found at the scene.
He has filed a complaint with Soeng Sang police. Officers said they have identified the suspect and are working to apprehend him.
Max Hollein, Director and CEO of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, answered questions from Khaosod English in an interview about the restitution of "Golden Boy" and other artefacts.
When Standing Shiva, known in Thailand as the Golden Boy, finally left New York in 2024, it was more than the return of a treasured bronze to its homeland. It was a milestone in a broader rethinking of cultural heritage, one that reaches from the halls of The Metropolitan Museum of Art to the temples of Angkor.
That year the museum initiated the repatriation of 16 ancient Khmer sculptures — 14 to the Kingdom of Cambodia and two to the Kingdom of Thailand, effectively removing from its collection all works linked to that period and a specific art dealer under investigation.
In an interview with Khaosod English, Max Hollein, director and CEO of The Met, called the move a reflection of research and the museum’s ethical responsibility to the countries of origin — not as an afterthought but as a guiding principle. His comments illuminate how one of the world’s most influential cultural institutions is navigating the long, often fraught history of collecting antiquities.
“Kneeling Female Figure“, an ancient bronze statue, is displayed during a repatriation ceremony at National Museum in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Rigorous provenance research
For Hollein, the returns to Cambodia and Thailand were not exceptional gestures but the result of a sustained internal effort. He described The Met’s Cultural Property Initiative as central to the museum’s work, aimed at reviewing the histories of objects in its collection with increasing scrutiny.
In recent years, The Met has expanded its dedicated provenance staff and formalised research across departments. The effort reflects a broader shift within the institution: provenance research is no longer treated as a background function, but as an ongoing responsibility that can lead to difficult decisions — including restitution.
“Our provenance research team continues to actively review works in our collection … and any future returns will be guided by rigorous research and close consultation with our partners,” Hollein said.
At the same time, Standing Shiva and Kneeling Female Figure were designated for return to Thailand, a move later celebrated during a Memorandum of Understanding signed between The Met and the Kingdom of Thailand in April 2024. The MOU formalised plans for deeper collaboration on Thai art, expertise exchange and joint exhibition and research initiatives — signalling that repatriations are part of a larger partnership, not stand-alone acts.
“Standing Shiva” or “Golden Boy” As seen on display in the National Museum in Bangkok, Thailand
“Immense cultural power”
Hollein spoke with evident admiration for Thai art and museum practice, drawing on his visits to Bangkok and regional institutions across the country. “Thailand’s heritage, both ancient and contemporary, holds immense cultural power,” he said.
He praised the National Museum Bangkok, as well as the national museums of Nakhon Pathom, U-Thong and Ayutthaya, describing their installations and interpretive displays as both “rigorous and inviting.” The renovation programme currently underway across Thailand’s national museum sector, he added, is “truly remarkable.”
Beyond the national museums, Hollein highlighted The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles for its “thoughtful curation and elegant storytelling,” noting how it presents royal history and craftsmanship with clarity and care. He also pointed to Dib Bangkok, the newly opened contemporary art museum designed by Kulapat Yantrasast — the architect behind The Met’s Michael C. Rockefeller Wing — as a sign of Thailand’s evolving cultural landscape.
The Thai MOU, he noted, reaffirms The Met’s commitment “to furthering the world’s understanding and appreciation of Thai art and culture.”
Beyond objects: digital, dialogue and museum futures
The interview expanded beyond repatriations to examine how museums engage with audiences today. When asked how the internet is reshaping the museum experience for the younger generation, Hollein said it has “transformed… extending our reach far beyond what we could have imagined even a decade ago,” describing it as an entry point for younger audiences rather than a replacement for in-person visits — one that deepens interest and widens access. Hollein noted that digital platforms bring global audiences into dialogue with art that was once reachable only by travel.
In that same spirit, digital reporting also broadens access to these conversations. Stories of restitution are also stories of identity. By reporting on these returns, Khaosod English seeks to illuminate the historical journeys of these objects and their enduring significance to Thai and Cambodian cultural memory.
But what emerged most strongly from our interview was a theme of responsibility.
A private museum, proactive in practice
Unlike many national institutions, Hollein emphasised that The Met’s private governance structure allows it to act proactively as new research emerges. In contrast to institutions bound by public law on deaccession and restitution, The Met can make decisions guided by scholarship and ethics, he said, which is why many of its recent returns were initiated by the museum itself rather than in response to external pressure.
“Our goal is to ensure each object in our care is understood and presented with ethical responsibility,” Hollein said — a statement that reframed restitution not as loss, but as ethical accountability.
A cultural moment
For Cambodia, the return of 14 sculptures has been welcomed as a milestone in recovering national treasures, part of a broader reckoning with losses during decades of conflict and upheaval. For Thailand, the return of the Golden Boy and its companion piece has been an exciting success in longstanding efforts to reclaim its heritage.
Taken together, these returns and partnerships reflect a museum world in transition — one in which collecting is no longer an end in itself, but part of an ongoing dialogue with countries, cultures and histories.
Max Hollein, director and CEO of The Met
Those wishing to witness the restituted works Kneeling Female Figure and the bronze Standing Shiva, known as “Golden Boy,” may do so at the National Museum in Bangkok. In Cambodia, the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara Seated in Royal Ease and a 7th-century Head of Buddha are now housed at the National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh — restored to the public histories from which they once departed. Readers can see more from Hollein in a post he made about Thailand on his Instragram page
PHNOM PENH — A Polish historian who went missing in Cambodia has been found in Phnom Penh in a severely weakened condition after allegedly being robbed, according to his family.
Adam Janusz Mielcarek, 59, lost contact with relatives on 21 January after travelling from Siem Reap to the Cambodian capital. His disappearance prompted appeals from his family and the involvement of diplomatic missions and international law enforcement agencies.
Telewizja Polska reported on 4 February that Mielcarek’s family had issued a desperate call for help after he vanished without trace. Mobile phone data cited by relatives showed his phone was located in central Phnom Penh before becoming inactive days later.
Khmer Times reported on 11 February that Mielcarek had been found in a critical condition.
His sister, Kamila Rind, said he was discovered after local residents recognised him from social media posts and contacted the family.
“He has been found and is in a very bad state. He was robbed. Somebody took everything, including his documents, telephone, shoes, and even glasses,” she said. “Some locals saw his photo on social media and recognised him at a park, so they contacted us. He has lost 15 kg and is malnourished. We could barely recognise him. He is hospitalised now.”
Rind said her brother is suffering from amnesia and cannot recall the events leading to his disappearance.
Mobile phone records previously showed his device was tracked to central Phnom Penh on 22 January before logging its final signal on 25 January.
The case drew attention from Polish diplomatic services, including the embassy in Bangkok, which covers Cambodia, as well as the Polish consul in Phnom Penh. Interpol and British police were also informed during the search.
Authorities have urged anyone with information about his movements during the period he was missing to assist with the investigation.
