Hundreds of Thais rally outside Israeli embassy in Bangkok over land and cultural disputes

The protest follows months of complaints about illegal landholding, cultural disrespect and proliferation of Israeli religious houses

Hundreds of Thais, led by a veteran political activist, rallied outside the Israeli Embassy in Bangkok on Thursday in a rare public protest against a group of foreign nationals.

The protest follows months of complaints about illegal landholding, disrespect towards local culture and proliferation of religious houses for Israelis, echoing those made by some locals in the Philippines and Sri Lanka.

Israelis have been flocking to Thailand since the war on Gaza that followed the October 7 Hamas assault on their country. Many are service personnel from the Israel Defence Forces seeking respite from a war that has killed over 70,000 Palestinians and left around 2 million more stranded on the strip without food and water.

In a country with hair-trigger sensitivities over sovereignty, allegations that swathes of prime Thai land have been sold illegally to Israelis have raised uproar. Disputes between Thais and Israelis – mainly on the islands of Phangan and Samui and the mountain retreat of Pai – over non-payment of bills, public misbehaviour and pro-Palestine flags at some Thai businesses have gone viral, adding to the tensions.

Thursday’s protest – which saw an angry crowd waving a sea of Thai tricolours and banners saying “Save Thailand” and “This is Not The Promised Land”, alongside some plainly antisemitic placards – was led by firebrand Sondhi Limthongkul.