Thai king cuts ex-PM Thaksin's jail term to one year
The HinduThailand's jailed former Premier Thaksin Shinawatra had his prison sentence cut from eight years to one by the King on Friday, just days after he returned from a decade and a half in exile. Mr. Thaksin, twice elected Prime Minister and ousted in a 2006 military coup, was sent to prison last week immediately after returning to the kingdom for the first time since 2008. Hours later Mr. Thavisin was confirmed as Prime Minister — the party's first premier since Mr. Thaksin's sister Yingluck was thrown out in a coup in 2014. On his first night back in Thailand, Mr. Thaksin was moved from jail to a police hospital, with prison medical officers saying he needed close monitoring for various health problems, including heart trouble. Parties linked to Mr. Thaksin dominated every Thai election since 2001 — until this year, when the progressive Move Forward Party won the most seats.