More than a million migrant workers in Thailand, most of them from Myanmar, face being deported after a deadline for getting work permits passes on Friday, a potential threat to industry and a situation activists say could lead to rights abuses.

Six people, including a 1-year-old girl and two teachers, were gunned down in separate attacks on a teashop and school in Thailand's insurgency-plagued south on Tuesday, police said.

Thailand's revered king called for unity and stability in the divided nation Wednesday as huge crowds of adoring, flag-waving citizens packed Bangkok for a rare speech to mark his 85th birthday.

Thailand's government survived a no-confidence vote on Wednesday, days after clashes in Bangkok between protesters and riot police in the largest demonstration against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's 16-month-old administration.

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Sunday faced a no-confidence debate launched by her opponents in parliament, a day after political protests turned violent in Bangkok.

Thai police on Saturday fired tear gas and detained dozens of demonstrators as clashes erupted at the first major street protests against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's government.

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Friday sought to promote Washington's strategic shift to the Asia-Pacific and a tentative rapprochement with Myanmar as he met counterparts in the region.

The United States and Thailand pledged Thursday to renew their military alliance for a new security era, during a regional tour by Washington's defense chief designed to counter China's rise.

Thailand and South Korea agreed to more than double their annual trade to US$30 billion over the next five years, the kingdom's prime minister said Saturday.

An 11-year-old boy was among six people killed in a spate of shootings in Thailand's restive south, police said Thursday, as violence continues to roil the Muslim-majority area.