Jonathan Head
@pakhead.bsky.social
BBC South East Asia Correspondent in Bangkok
Really perceptive observations here on what fuels the scam economy in SE Asia from @neiloughlin.bsky.social thediplomat.com/2025/11/crac...
Cracking Southeast Asia’s Scam Economy
Washington and London’s recent unprecedented actions showed what global coordination can achieve – and what remains to be done.
thediplomat.com
November 16, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Really perceptive observations here on what fuels the scam economy in SE Asia from @neiloughlin.bsky.social thediplomat.com/2025/11/crac...
The Ta’ang National Liberation Army has made a ceasefire deal with Myanmar military under Chinese supervision in Kunming. The TNLA will leave the ruby town of Mogyoke, effectively reversing all its gains from Operation 1027. The junta has restored its position in Shan State.
October 29, 2025 at 12:08 PM
The Ta’ang National Liberation Army has made a ceasefire deal with Myanmar military under Chinese supervision in Kunming. The TNLA will leave the ruby town of Mogyoke, effectively reversing all its gains from Operation 1027. The junta has restored its position in Shan State.
This pretty much sums up the state of Thai politics right now fulcrum.sg/grand-compro...
Grand Compromise or Grand Damage to Thailand’s Party System? | FULCRUM
Thailand has been caught in a series of political compromises made between strange bedfellows. If this continues, voters will become more cynical about the political system’s ability to deliver out…
fulcrum.sg
October 28, 2025 at 4:06 AM
This pretty much sums up the state of Thai politics right now fulcrum.sg/grand-compro...
Trump presides over Thai-Cambodia 'peace deal' - but what does it mean? www.bbc.com/news/article...
Trump presides over Thai-Cambodia 'peace deal' - but what does it mean?
Trump calls it historic, Thailand only calls is "a pathway to peace", but all sides hope the agreement will stick.
www.bbc.com
October 26, 2025 at 9:19 AM
Trump presides over Thai-Cambodia 'peace deal' - but what does it mean? www.bbc.com/news/article...
The mysterious owner of a 'scam empire' accused of stealing $14bn in crypto www.bbc.com/news/article...
Chen Zhi: The mysterious 'scam empire' owner accused of stealing $14bn in crypto
The Cambodian national is charged with running scam compounds that stole from people all over the world.
www.bbc.com
October 24, 2025 at 2:01 AM
The mysterious owner of a 'scam empire' accused of stealing $14bn in crypto www.bbc.com/news/article...
Myanmar's army is taking back territory with relentless air strikes - and China's help www.bbc.com/news/article...
Myanmar civil war: The junta is taking back territory with relentless air strikes and China's help
China has thrown its weight behind the junta - and its widely condemned plan to hold an election in December.
www.bbc.com
October 23, 2025 at 12:47 AM
Myanmar's army is taking back territory with relentless air strikes - and China's help www.bbc.com/news/article...
It is 50 years today since Indonesian troops killed 5 journalists reporting in the Timor Leste border town of Balibo, as a prelude to the full-scale Indonesian invasion in Dec 1975. Never forget. Greg Shackleton, Brian Peters, Tony Stewart, Greg Cunningham, Malcolm Rennie.
October 16, 2025 at 5:11 AM
It is 50 years today since Indonesian troops killed 5 journalists reporting in the Timor Leste border town of Balibo, as a prelude to the full-scale Indonesian invasion in Dec 1975. Never forget. Greg Shackleton, Brian Peters, Tony Stewart, Greg Cunningham, Malcolm Rennie.
I don’t think this kind of tactic helps Thailand’s case at all www.facebook.com/share/v/16fP...
Redirecting...
www.facebook.com
October 12, 2025 at 2:23 AM
I don’t think this kind of tactic helps Thailand’s case at all www.facebook.com/share/v/16fP...
An important alternative perspective on the Thai-Cambodia conflict prachataienglish.com/node/11596
Manufactured Conflict and Military Supremacy in Thai–Cambodian Relations
The recurring clashes between Thailand and Cambodia are often described as the residue of colonial-era boundary disputes. This explanation, however, obscures the real dynamic: the Thai military’s repe...
prachataienglish.com
October 12, 2025 at 2:17 AM
An important alternative perspective on the Thai-Cambodia conflict prachataienglish.com/node/11596
A fierce war of words keeps Thailand and Cambodia on edge www.bbc.com/news/article...
Thai-Cambodia conflict: A fierce war of words keeps the two countries on edge
The two sides are waging an information war to win international sympathy and shore up support at home.
www.bbc.com
August 21, 2025 at 1:57 AM
A fierce war of words keeps Thailand and Cambodia on edge www.bbc.com/news/article...
Shock, chaos and a hollow win: What it's like to do a tariff deal with Trump www.bbc.com/news/article...
Trump's tariffs: The shock, chaos and negotiations behind Thailand's trade deal
It's been a fraught process for many countries - with little detail about what exactly has been agreed.
www.bbc.com
August 1, 2025 at 5:13 AM
Shock, chaos and a hollow win: What it's like to do a tariff deal with Trump www.bbc.com/news/article...
First rate analysis of the origins of the Thai Cambodia conflict, streasing how mich we just don’t know www.coffeeparliament.com/p/on-the-dom...
On the "Domestic Rivalry Theory" and the "International Family Feud Theory"
Examining the origins of the Thailand-Cambodia clash
www.coffeeparliament.com
July 27, 2025 at 1:48 PM
First rate analysis of the origins of the Thai Cambodia conflict, streasing how mich we just don’t know www.coffeeparliament.com/p/on-the-dom...
Very fortunate to get to this little island far out in the South China Sea, if only for a few hours.
An island called Hope is standing up to Beijing in the South China Sea www.bbc.com/news/article...
An island called Hope is standing up to Beijing in the South China Sea www.bbc.com/news/article...
A Philippines island defying Beijing in the South China Sea
Pagasa is barely big enough for a plane to land, but it stands tall against an armada of Chinese ships.
www.bbc.com
May 21, 2025 at 3:55 AM
Very fortunate to get to this little island far out in the South China Sea, if only for a few hours.
An island called Hope is standing up to Beijing in the South China Sea www.bbc.com/news/article...
An island called Hope is standing up to Beijing in the South China Sea www.bbc.com/news/article...
'I need help': Freed from Myanmar's scam centres, thousands are now stranded www.bbc.com/news/article...
Myanmar scam centres: Thousands who have been freed are now stuck in camps
The camps are unsanitary, food barely sufficient, and many of those being held are in poor health.
www.bbc.com
February 27, 2025 at 1:09 AM
'I need help': Freed from Myanmar's scam centres, thousands are now stranded www.bbc.com/news/article...
Do US super-carriers make sense anymore? The BBC goes on board one www.bbc.com/news/article...
Do US super-carriers make sense anymore? The BBC goes on board one
The USS Carl Vinson joins a naval exercise in the Pacific with Japan and France.
www.bbc.com
February 21, 2025 at 2:04 AM
Do US super-carriers make sense anymore? The BBC goes on board one www.bbc.com/news/article...
Scams, casinos and high-rises: The BBC visits a bizarre city in a war zone www.bbc.com/news/article...
Myanmar's Shwe Kokko: Inside a city 'built on scams'
A haven for the super rich, or a city built on scams? The BBC was invited to find out.
www.bbc.com
February 7, 2025 at 2:49 AM
Scams, casinos and high-rises: The BBC visits a bizarre city in a war zone www.bbc.com/news/article...
'A long fight full of tears': Why Thailand became a haven for LGBT couples www.bbc.com/news/article...
Why Thailand became a haven for LGBT couples
Thailand is set to legalise same-sex marriage - one of the few places in Asia to do so. Why is it an outlier?
www.bbc.com
January 22, 2025 at 12:40 PM
'A long fight full of tears': Why Thailand became a haven for LGBT couples www.bbc.com/news/article...
'Hell on earth': China deportation looms for Uyghurs held in Thailand www.bbc.com/news/article...
'Hell on earth': Deportation looms for Uyghurs held in Thailand
Forty eight men detained since they fled China years ago risk being deported, rights groups say.
www.bbc.com
January 21, 2025 at 12:12 AM
'Hell on earth': China deportation looms for Uyghurs held in Thailand www.bbc.com/news/article...
How a viral post saved a Chinese actor from Myanmar's scam centres www.bbc.com/news/article...
Wang Xing: Chinese actor's rescue shines light on scam centres
Many Chinese are now asking: what about their loved ones still trapped in scam centres?
www.bbc.com
January 10, 2025 at 5:58 AM
How a viral post saved a Chinese actor from Myanmar's scam centres www.bbc.com/news/article...
A politician was shot dead in Bangkok. Did another country do it? www.bbc.com/news/article...
Lim Kimya: Why was a Cambodian opposition politician killed in Bangkok?
Lim Kimya's killing had all the hallmarks of a cold-blooded, professional assassination.
www.bbc.com
January 9, 2025 at 2:41 AM
A politician was shot dead in Bangkok. Did another country do it? www.bbc.com/news/article...
Interesting experiment. There’s a lot of talk of AI replacing journalists one day. I asked ChatGPT to write me a 1000 word report on the fighting this year between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army in Rakhine State. The result was a poorly-written, misleading account full of vague language.
December 15, 2024 at 10:57 AM
Interesting experiment. There’s a lot of talk of AI replacing journalists one day. I asked ChatGPT to write me a 1000 word report on the fighting this year between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army in Rakhine State. The result was a poorly-written, misleading account full of vague language.
Dramatic video posted by the Arakan Army shows the intensity of the fighting for the last base held by the military in northern Rakhine State Bloody siege ends Myanmar army control of western border www.bbc.com/news/article...
A bloody siege ends Myanmar army control of western border
Insurgents seized Myanmar's border with Bangladesh in one of the bloodiest battles of the civil war.
www.bbc.com
December 13, 2024 at 8:11 AM
Dramatic video posted by the Arakan Army shows the intensity of the fighting for the last base held by the military in northern Rakhine State Bloody siege ends Myanmar army control of western border www.bbc.com/news/article...