Yoon orders 'scientific safety measures' after battery plant fire

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday ordered his administration to come up with "scientific safety measures," in a follow-up to the deadly blaze in a lithium battery factory last week in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. At a Cabinet meeting he presided over Tuesday in his office, Yoon ordered the Ministry of Interior and Safety, the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Ministry of Science and ICT to strengthen their collaboration to develop relevant risk detection technologies and firefi

PoliticsJuly 2, 2024

Police kick off 2-month crackdown on reckless motorists

The South Korean police said Tuesday they had commenced a nationwide clampdown against groups of reckless drivers and motorcyclists across the country, which will continue until Aug. 31. Groups of people riding motorcycles or driving cars aggressively without obeying the traffic law are known locally as pokjujok. Although they are not motorcycle gangs or other organized crime groups, the dangerous driving in itself has sparked concern. In a recent case on June 25 in Cheonan, South Chungcheong

Social AffairsJuly 2, 2024

[Herald Interview] Kazakhstan keen to learn from Korean police: deputy minister

Kazakhstan is eager to learn from Korea's public and personnel administration in law enforcement, said Saitbekov Aidar, Kazakhstan’s deputy minister of internal affairs, in an interview with The Korea Herald on Thursday. Saitbekov was in Korea to attend the UN Public Service Forum in Songdo, Incheon, from June 24 to 26, an annual meeting since 2003 that gathered around 2,000 officials from about 100 countries to discuss innovations and challenges in public administration. Kazakhstan&r

Foreign AffairsJuly 2, 2024

Ward office to limit evening access to Bukchon Hanok Village

The Jongno-gu district office said Tuesday it would limit tourist access to Bukchon Hanok Village in the evening starting in October, to relieve stress for local residents and protect the historic infrastructure there. Tourist entry to residential areas in the village will be prohibited from 5 p.m. to 10 a.m., aimed at reducing noise and ensuring residents' privacy during these hours. The restricted area, designated as Red Zones, includes Bukchon-ro 11-gil, where residential hanoks are dens

Social AffairsJuly 2, 2024

S. Korea resumes border artillery drills on land for 1st time in 6 years

South Korea resumed live-fire exercises at artillery ranges near the border with North Korea on Tuesday for the first time in six years, following the suspension of an inter-Korean tension-reduction pact that restricted such drills. Troops fired some 140 rounds using the K9 and K105A1 self-propelled howitzers during the drills at front-line ranges in the provinces of Gyeonggi and Gangwon, located within 5 kilometers of the Military Demarcation Line within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating

DefenseJuly 2, 2024

Ruling party to launch filibuster to block special probe bill on Marine's death

The ruling People Power Party threatened to launch a filibuster Tuesday if the opposition seeks to pass a contentious bill mandating a special counsel investigation into the military's response to a Marine's death last year. The move comes as the main opposition Democratic Party is pushing to pass the bill and three broadcasting law revisions during this week's parliamentary plenary session despite objections from the PPP. The special probe bill calls for a special counsel to look

PoliticsJuly 2, 2024

Yoon approves resignation of broadcasting watchdog chief ahead of impeachment vote

President Yoon Suk Yeol accepted the resignation of Korea Communications Commission Chairman Kim Hong-il on Tuesday, his office said, before a National Assembly vote on his impeachment. Kim offered to voluntarily step down earlier in the day, a move designed to have a successor continue the duties because impeachment would suspend the job. The position holds the key to decisions on broadcasting stations, including the appointment of a new president at MBC TV. The resignation came just hours befo

PoliticsJuly 2, 2024

Head of broadcasting regulator voluntarily resigns as opposition parties seek impeachment

The head of the broadcasting regulator voluntarily stepped down Tuesday, as opposition parties are set to vote on an impeachment motion against him. Kim Hong-il, chair of the Korea Communications Commission, offered his resignation and skipped a Cabinet meeting earlier in the day. His voluntary stepping down came hours before the main opposition Democratic Party is set to report an impeachment motion against him to a plenary session of the National Assembly, citing "abuse of power." Th

PoliticsJuly 2, 2024

N. Korea says it test-fired new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying super-large warhead

North Korea has test-fired a new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying a super-large warhead, state media reported Tuesday, a day after South Korea said the North fired two missiles and one of them could have failed. North Korea successfully launched the Hwasong-11Da-4.5 missile capable of carrying a 4.5 ton-class super-large warhead on Monday, according to the Korean Central News Agency. "The test-fire was conducted with a missile tipped with a simulated heavy warhead to verify fl

North KoreaJuly 2, 2024

[Graphic News] Monthly births rise for first time in 19 months

The number of babies born in South Korea marked on-year growth for the first time in 19 months in April, data showed, as the country is struggling to boost its ultralow birth rate. A total of 19,049 babies were born in April 2024, up 2.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It was the first time since September 2022 that the figure logged on-year growth. “The growth came as the number of newly married couples rose over the past couple of years

Social AffairsJuly 2, 2024

Yoon calls for swift response to central Seoul accident

President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered related government agencies to respond swiftly to the deadly car accident that took place late Monday near Seoul city hall. “President Yoon was briefed about the car accident and ordered the minister of interior and safety, and the chief of the National Fire Agency to ‘focus all resources to rescue and treatment of the victims,” Kim Soo-kyung, the president spokesperson said in a written briefing Monday evening. The incident took place at around

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2024

At least 9 dead in central Seoul car accident: reports

A major traffic accident occurred near Seoul's City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul, killing at least nine pedestrians and injuring four others, according to fire authorities. According to the National Fire Agency, a vehicle drove onto the sidewalk at an intersection near Exit 12 of City Hall Station at around 9:26 p.m., hitting pedestrians who were waiting to cross the street. Police arrested a man in his 60s at the scene. The driver is reportedly claiming that the accident was caused by a

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2024

Rival parties lock horns over Marine's death at committee meeting

Rival parties clashed Monday over a bill mandating a special counsel investigation into the military's response to a Marine's death last year. The parliamentary House Steering Committee held a plenary meeting and questioned Chung Jin-suk, the presidential chief of staff, Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo and other officials about the Marine's death. Lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party reiterated their calls for a special probe bill surrounding

PoliticsJuly 1, 2024

Canadian frigate visits Incheon for Indo-Pacific alliance

The Royal Canadian Navy’s frigate, the HMCS Montreal, arrived in South Korea’s western port city of Incheon on June 27 for a six-day mission, underscoring Canada’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region. Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy serves as a comprehensive framework for increasing Canadian engagement across the Indo-Pacific, working with allies and partners to promote a stable, secure, and prosperous region, stated the Canadian Embassy in a press release on Wednesday.

Foreign AffairsJuly 1, 2024

Dior bag in first lady's scandal stored by presidential office: official

The controversial luxury Christian Dior bag at the center of the antigraft law violation scandal involving the first lady is currently being managed and stored by the presidential office, an official said Monday. “To my knowledge, the Dior bag that was received by first lady Kim Keon Hee is currently stored in the presidential office building in the state that it was first gifted to her,” presidential chief of staff Chung Jin-seok told a parliamentary hearing at the National Assembly

PoliticsJuly 1, 2024

How Putin-Kim summit tips South Korea’s balance on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin signing a defense treaty with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has South Korea rethinking its stance on arming Ukraine. Through nearly 2 1/2 years of Russia’s grinding war in Ukraine, Seoul has not strayed from its policy of “nonlethal aid only” to Kyiv over two administrations, both liberal and conservative. That may change now that Putin has committed to fight on Kim’s side in the event of an invasion under the new military pact signed du

PoliticsJuly 1, 2024

Belarus recalls history, hopes to revive ties with S. Korea

The Belarusian Embassy in Seoul commemorated Belarus' National Day, recalling history and hoping to revive ties with South Korea on Friday. Belarusian National Day, observed on July 3, marks the liberation of Belarus from Nazi Germany in 1944. "The people of the Republic of Belarus, like the people of the Republic of Korea, have experienced both periods of joy and moments of sorrow," said Belarusian Ambassador to Korea Andrew Chernetsky in his remarks. Chernetsky acknowledged that

Foreign AffairsJuly 1, 2024

Teen on joyride damages 4 cars

Officers at a police station in Gyeonggi Province said Monday it is investigating a teenager on possible violation of the Road Traffic Act, after unlicensed driving by the adolescent led to a collision with four cars. The teenage suspect, whose identity was withheld, took a Hyundai Sonata around 11:10 p.m. Sunday and drove it around Dongan-gu, Anyang, 18 kilometers south of Seoul. He told police that he had done so because he had an argument with his mother. The boy, who did not have a driver&

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2024

Alleged coercive investigation by police of falsely accused man sparks furor

A local branch of the South Korean police is facing public scrutiny over its alleged coercive investigation of a man who was wrongfully accused of threatening a woman with sexual molestation. The Hwaseong Dongtan Police Station in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province recently posted a notice on its homepage telling the public that internet users have wrongly identified multiple police officers as responsible for the controversial handling of the recent case. But people responded by chastising the police

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2024

Summer this year forecast to be hotter, rainier than usual

Following heavy rain nationwide over the weekend, the Korea Meteorological Administration stated Monday that rainy weather would continue on Tuesday and Wednesday, with some regions more heavily hit than others. Starting Tuesday morning, the Greater Seoul area -- Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province -- will see some 30 to 80 millimeters of rain, with heavily hit regions seeing up to 120 mm of rain. Other areas, including Gangwon Province and the South and North Chungcheong provinces will also se

Social AffairsJuly 1, 2024