Most Popular
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
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Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
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Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
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Civil servant’s death linked to workplace bullying
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[Weekender] Walk around Korea to really get to know the country
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[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
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Hanwha, HD Hyundai vie for Poland’s $2.7b submarine program
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First lady’s controversies to top agenda at meeting of party leaders
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[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
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Revised traffic law to allow police, firefighters to act promptly
Drivers of emergency vehicles such as police cars, fire trucks and ambulances will not be punished for running traffic lights or crossing the median when carrying out their official duties, according to the revised Road Traffic Act. The new act became effective Tuesday, the National Fire Agency and the National Police Agency said in a joint press release. The law was revised to ensure that emergencies are handled promptly -- meaning, for example, that fire trucks arrive within five minutes a
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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S. Korea nears deal to buy Novavax COVID-19 vaccines
South Korea is close to striking a deal to purchase COVID-19 vaccines for 10 million people from US drugmaker Novavax, according to informed sources Tuesday. The Seoul government has been negotiating with Novavax to secure its vaccines as early as in the second quarter of this year, sources with knowledge of the issue said. In August 2020, Novavax signed a development and supply deal with Korean bio firm SK Bioscience Co. to supply vaccines in global markets. The government earlier said it ha
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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NK’s congress nears end with signs of military parade
North Korea’s rare party congress appears to be nearing its end, with officials reviewing a draft resolution on the policy goals laid out by the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, and with key officials receiving invitations to “celebrations” of the congress, which could mean a military parade. The delegates gathered for the ongoing eighth congress of the ruling Workers’ Party discussed a draft resolution for “thoroughly implementing the tasks set forth in the
North KoreaJan. 12, 2021
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N. Korean officials seen wearing masks at party congress after days of no-mask sessions
North Korean officials participating in the ongoing party congress were seen wearing face masks in their latest meetings for the first time since its opening last week, raising questions over its standards on antivirus guidelines. Photos released by state media on Tuesday showed North Korean officials in blue face masks at the seventh-day session of the party congress as they were participating in consultative meetings the previous day. The delegates were seen sitting in close proximity, but m
North KoreaJan. 12, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Public outcry grows over group killing, torturing stray cats
Public outrage is growing in South Korea over a group of people shown brutally killing and torturing stray cats in videos and then encouraging such acts in a mobile chat room, leading the police to launch an investigation into the case Monday. In an open online chat room named “Gore Professionals” on the country’s top messenger app, KakaoTalk, anonymous users reportedly shared pictures and videos that showed stray cats being brutally killed and tortured. They also reportedly
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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Foreign ministry seeks probe into top envoy in Nigeria over alleged unfair hiring
The foreign ministry has filed a complaint with the prosecution seeking a probe into allegations that the South Korean ambassador in Nigeria was involved in the unfair hiring of a former embassy employee, officials said Tuesday. A local newspaper reported that the ministry filed the complaint after finding substantial grounds to believe that Ambassador Lee In-tae gave undue favors to the Korean employee in the course of recruitment in 2019. The embassy staff member in question quit the job aft
Foreign AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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[News Focus] Small businesses to launch legal challenge to social distancing rules
Small business owners are taking legal action against the government, calling the social distancing rules unfair and saying the restrictions have greatly diminished their chances of economic survival. On Monday, a group representing coffee shop owners in South Korea announced that around 200 of its members would lodge a suit against the government later this week demanding compensation for business lost as a result of the government’s social distancing rules. In the suit, to be filed wi
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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[Newsmaker] S. Korea investigating 3 suspected cases of highly pathogenic bird flu
South Korea's agricultural ministry said Tuesday it is investigating three suspected cases of highly pathogenic bird flu from poultry farms. The latest suspected case of the malign H5N8 strain of avian influenza was reported from a duck farm in Goseong, 466 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. There were also suspected cases from Muju, 241 kilometers south of Seoul, and Namyangju, just north of the capital city. South Korea has confirmed
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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New sentencing guidelines subject biz owners to up to 10 1/2 yrs in prison for workplace deaths
New sentencing guidelines will subject business owners to up to 10 1/2 years behind bars in the event of their employees' deaths owing to lax safety or health protection measures, the top court said Tuesday. According to the Supreme Court, its Sentencing Commission fixed the guidelines on workplace disaster cases during its online meeting held a day earlier. The new guidelines call for jail sentences between one and two and a half years for business owners for on-duty deaths at their workplace
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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Xi congratulates NK leader on election as 'general secretary,' calls for stronger ties
Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message congratulating North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on his election as general secretary of the ruling party and called for strong relations between the two countries, Pyongyang's media said Tuesday. Xi noted that Kim's election "fully showed the trust, support and expectation of all the WPK members and other Korean people for him," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, referring to the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. He also expressed his
North KoreaJan. 12, 2021
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S. Korea in talks to buy additional vaccines of different platform: PM
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Tuesday that the government is working to purchase additional coronavirus vaccines of a different platform to better ensure the safe inoculation of the public. "The government has been working to purchase an additional quantity of vaccines of another platform and has seen substantial progress," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Sejong, 120 kilometers south of Seoul. Chung said the gov
PoliticsJan. 12, 2021
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S. Korea identifies remains of another Korean War soldier
South Korea has identified the remains of a soldier killed in the 1950-53 Korean War through DNA analysis after they were recovered from a former battle site, the defense ministry said Tuesday. The identification of the remains of Ssg. Ban Cheol-hwan was possible as his 70-year-old daughter, Ban Gyeong-ah, registered her DNA sample with the government last month, according to the ministry. Ban's remains were excavated in the northeastern county of Inje in 2016. The identification marks the 158
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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N. Korea, China have no respect for human rights: Pompeo
Countries like North Korea and China have no respect for human rights and oppose other universal values such as democracy, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday. "Governments like those in China, Iran, North Korea, they don't have the respect for the universal dignity of every human being in the way that America does," the top US diplomat said in a speech at Washington-based Voice of America (VOA). "Indeed, that is what America was founded upon. Those regimes are anathem
North KoreaJan. 12, 2021
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New virus cases in 500s on tougher curbs, alert high over potential upticks
The number of new coronavirus cases in South Korea remained in the 500 range on Tuesday, possibly indicating that the country's virus curve is flattening on the back of tightened social distancing measures. The country added 537 more COVID-19 cases, including 508 local infections, raising the total caseload to 69,651, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Tuesday's daily caseload is slightly up from 451 recorded a day earlier. Monday's daily caseload marked the
Social AffairsJan. 12, 2021
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Two Busan churches ordered to shut down for violating in-person worship ban
Two churches in the southeastern port city of Busan have been ordered to shut down after repeatedly holding in-person worship services in violation of the pandemic-driven social distancing rules, local officials said Monday. Under the administrative orders by Busan's ward offices, the two Protestant churches -- Saegyero and Seobu -- have been forced to shut down for defying the antivirus distancing measures. Busan has been under the second-strongest social distancing scheme of Level 2.5 since
Social AffairsJan. 11, 2021
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Homeowners in their 20s and 30s more willing to date: study
Among those in their 20s and 30s in South Korea, those who have a permanent job or own a real estate are more likely to pursue a romantic relationship, a study revealed, showing economic power is a key factor influencing one’s dating and marriage prospects. A study by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs polled 3,002 people aged between 25 and 39 from Aug. 31-Sept. 13 in 2018. The chances of dating for those who own a property increased by 27.9 percentage points compared t
Social AffairsJan. 11, 2021
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Moon reaffirms willingness to talk with NK ‘anytime, anywhere’
President Moon Jae-in reaffirmed his willingness to talk with North Korea in his New Year’s address Monday, saying South Korea is ready to talk “anytime, anywhere and even in a non-face-to-face way.” “Dialogue and win-win cooperation are the key driving forces of the peace process on the Korean Peninsula,” he said in a live broadcast from Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul. “Our will to meet (with North Korea) anytime, anywhere, even in a non-face-to-face way, remains
PoliticsJan. 11, 2021
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CEO says controversial AI chatbot ‘Luda’ will socialize in time
Korean firm Scatter Lab has defended its Lee Luda chatbot in response to calls to end the service after the bot began sending offensive comments and was subjected to sexual messages. Kim Jong-yoon, CEO of Scatter Lab, posted answers Friday to the public’s questions through the development team’s official blog, saying the bot was still a work in progress and -- like humans -- would take a while to properly socialize. Kim acknowledged that he had expected this controversy to ignite
Social AffairsJan. 11, 2021
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Kim Jong-un promoted to general secretary
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un consolidated his grip on power at the party congress Sunday, where he was elected general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea. His predecessors all held the title, while his late father, Kim Jong-il, was named “eternal general secretary” in 2012 when Kim Jong-un succeeded him. “Leader Kim Jong-un has reshaped the party leadership, as guided by ideologies shared by Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, and put forward policies for North Korean
North KoreaJan. 11, 2021
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S. Korea to send vessel for search operation on Indonesian plane crash
South Korea said Monday it has sent a research vessel to waters near Jakarta to join the ongoing operation to search for victims of a deadly plane crash. The 12-ton research vessel, set to arrive at the scene later in the day, will utilize high-end equipment to carry out underwater search operations, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. The research ship was built under an official development assistance project for Indonesia. The rescue operation came after an airplane of Indon
Social AffairsJan. 11, 2021