Most Popular
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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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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[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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4 in 10 young South Koreans take up 'irregular' jobs: data
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'1 million' Christians join anti-LGBTQ+ marriage rally
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SM founder Lee Soo-man is back with A2O Entertainment
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[Newsmaker] COVID-19 cases top 50,000 in S. Korea amid worsening pandemic
South Korea's total COVID-19 caseload broke the 50,000 mark on Monday as new cases have been rising at their fastest pace ever, hampering authorities' antivirus efforts. New cases stood at 926 earlier in the day to push up the total to 50,591, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily death toll hit a record high of 24, raising the total to 698. The caseload surpassed the 50,000 mark in the 11 months since the nation reported its first case on Jan. 20. The
Social AffairsDec. 21, 2020
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Raising distancing rules to top level should remain as government's 'final card': PM
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday that elevating the nation's social distancing rules to the highest Level 3 should be a last resort for the government in dealing with the new coronavirus crisis, stressing the importance for the public to properly follow state-mandated distancing rules. "Adjusting the social distancing level needs to be prepared thoroughly, but it should remain as the final card," Chung said during a government meeting of top officials in charge of dealing wit
PoliticsDec. 21, 2020
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Ex-US Defense Secretary Mattis to receive Korea-US alliance award
Former US Defense Secretary James Mattis was chosen as the recipient of a South Korean government award for his contribution to the security of the Korean Peninsula and the bilateral alliance, the defense ministry said Monday. Mattis, who served as the top US defense official between 2017 and 2019, will receive this year's Paik Sun-yup Award, which was named after the best-known South Korean hero of the 1950-53 Korean War. He is the eighth recipient. "He played a pivotal role in managing
DefenseDec. 21, 2020
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Capital area bans gatherings of 5 or more people to stem COVID-19 spread
Gatherings of five or more people will be banned in the greater Seoul area, beginning Wednesday, in a new hard-line measure to combat the spread of the coronavirus, local governments said Monday. The governments of Seoul and neighboring Gyeonggi Province and Incheon announced the strident assembly restriction measure in time for the upcoming peak season for year-end gatherings and events. The new administrative order for the restrictions on freedom of assembly will take effect at midnight Tues
PoliticsDec. 21, 2020
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Presidential secretary for peace planning tapped as new chief nuclear envoy
South Korea replaced its chief nuclear envoy Monday, naming a seasoned diplomat and presidential aide to take on the job, as the country prepares to work with the incoming US administration of Joe Biden to move the stalled nuclear talks with North Korea forward. Noh Kyu-duk, a career diplomat serving as presidential secretary for peace planning, was named to replace Lee Do-hoon as the special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, the foreign ministry announced in a pre
PoliticsDec. 21, 2020
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New virus cases under 1,000 on fewer tests, daily death toll hits new high
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,000 for the first time in six days Monday, mainly due to less testing over the weekend, as health authorities are set to announce new virus restrictions over the Christmas and New Year's Day holiday period. The daily virus death toll also hit a record high amid rising patients. The country added 926 more COVID-19 cases, including 892 local infections, raising the total caseload to 50,591, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention
Social AffairsDec. 21, 2020
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Justice ministry scheduled to convene committee to decide on special pardon
The Ministry of Justice is expected to convene a committee to deliberate on a special pardon, legal sources said Monday. The ministry's amnesty review committee is scheduled to meet later in the day at the government complex in Gwacheon, south of Seoul. The committee, chaired by Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, is made up of nine members, including more than four outside experts. President Moon Jae-in has the final authority on whom to pardon, after the justice minister's initiation and the delib
PoliticsDec. 21, 2020
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S. Korean contractor at Camp Humphreys tests positive for COVID-19
A South Korean employee at a US military base in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, US Forces Korea (USFK) has said. The contractor who works at Camp Humprheys was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 on Friday after developing symptoms, according to the USFK. He lasted visited the base Wednesday. The contractor was in isolation at his off-installation home, waiting to be transferred to a medical facility designated for virus patients,
Social AffairsDec. 21, 2020
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More Koreans dying of COVID-19 without ever receiving care
As the third surge of new coronavirus infections packs hospitals, more patients around South Korea are dying without ever having access to medical care. Another Seoul resident died waiting for hospital treatment more than a day after being confirmed to have COVID-19, marking the second such known casualty in the capital, public health officials said Sunday. They said the man in his 60s died at his home in Guro-gu, southern Seoul, in the early hours of Sunday. He was diagnosed with the virus
Social AffairsDec. 20, 2020
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NK to expand inter-Korean resort ‘its way’
North Korea said Sunday that it will expand the inter-Korean resort town on the east coast near Kumgangsan in its own way, in a move seen as trying to rally its people ahead of the January party congress. The regime is expected to unveil a new economic initiative there. In January this year, Pyongyang put off plans to tear down the South Korean-built resort facilities amid the coronavirus pandemic. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had insisted on their demolition, calling the facilities &ldqu
North KoreaDec. 20, 2020
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[Herald Interview] ‘I’ve found peace,’ says man exonerated after 31 years
CHEONGJU, North Chungcheong Province -- Yun Sung-yeo, 53, served two decades behind bars for the rape and murder of a child until he was released on parole in 2009. On Thursday, the court overturned his conviction after an infamous serial killer confessed to the crime. “You know in your heart you didn’t do it. But no one else really believes you. Now, my family and I don’t have to live in shame,” he told The Korea Herald at a home for newly released inmates in Cheongju,
Social AffairsDec. 20, 2020
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Ahn Cheol-soo to run for Seoul mayor
Ahn Cheol-soo, chairman of the minor opposition People’s Party, on Sunday announced his bid for Seoul mayor, saying he is prepared to sacrifice himself to prevent the ruling bloc from maintaining power. “I concluded that losing the Seoul mayoral election making it impossible to bring about an administration change must be prevented even if I have to throw myself (into the task),” Ahn said at a press conference at the National Assembly. The post of Seoul mayor, which has rema
PoliticsDec. 20, 2020
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S. Korea to begin COVID-19 vaccination in Q1 2021, PM says
South Korea will be able to start the coronavirus vaccination of its people in the first quarter of next year on a limited basis, according to Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun. "Inoculation will begin as early as in February or March at the latest," he said in an interview with KBS, a Seoul-based broadcaster. But the vaccine produced by AstraZeneca would only be available in the first half of 2021 under a current contract, not shots made by such other foreign drugmakers as Pfizer, Moder
PoliticsDec. 20, 2020
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[Newsmaker] N. Korea making all-out efforts against coronavirus before key party convention
North Korea has been striving to stave off a COVID-19 outbreak on its soil ahead of a major national event, according to its state-controlled media Sunday. It plans to convene the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea next month, in which the Kim Jong-un regime is expected to unveil the direction of its major policies at home and abroad. No exact date has been announced yet. The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the powerful ruling party, called for more thorough coronavirus virus
North KoreaDec. 20, 2020
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New infection cases hit fresh high, virus response faces biggest peril
South Korea's new coronavirus cases spiked by more than 1,000 for the fifth straight day to hit a fresh record high Sunday, putting the country's virus battle in the most trouble so far amid rising death tolls. The country added 1,097 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,072 local infections, raising the total caseload to 49,665, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The tally marked a rise from 1,053 cases Saturday and 1,062 Friday. The previous record high was repo
Social AffairsDec. 20, 2020
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NK premier calls for building Mt. Kumgang tourist area 'our own way,' Seoul hopes for consultations
North Korea's Premier Kim Tok-hun visited the Mount Kumgang region on the country's eastern coast and called for building a modern and all-inclusive international tourist area "our own way," state media reported Sunday. In response, the South Korean government expressed hope that the two sides will have consultations on the Mount Kumgang issue at an "appropriate time" in consideration of the COVID-19 situation. Kim's visit, which came despite a nationwide fight against the
North KoreaDec. 20, 2020
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'Mysterious structure' set up at Pyongyang square for upcoming party congress: 38 North
One "mysterious structure" has been built at the main square in North Korea's capital city of Pyongyang, which appears to be related to its party congress slated for next month, a US website monitoring the communist country has said. According to 38 North on Friday, a small building surrounded by a high wall has been built in Kim Il-sung Square "right across the street from the viewing platform used by (leader) Kim Jong-un and party officials during parades." It also said t
North KoreaDec. 19, 2020
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[Photo News] Cold wave of winter air hits Seoul amid COVID-19
The cold winter air swipes through central Seoul on Thursday morning amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Puffs of warm breath can be seen swirling out from behind people’s masks in the frigid and windy weather. The weather remains in subfreezing temperatures as winter approaches its peak deeping into December. People walk through a park with hot drinks in their hands to keep warm during the day. Photos: (Yonhap) By Song Donna (donnadsong@heraldcorp.com)
Social AffairsDec. 19, 2020
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Vice justice minister said to have run-in with taxi driver before appointment
Vice Justice Minister Lee Yong-gu allegedly engaged in an altercation with a taxi driver while intoxicated in early November, when he was working as a lawyer, police officials said Saturday. Lee grabbed the taxi driver by the collar at an apartment complex in southern Seoul one night, as the driver was waking him up, according to officials at the Seocho Police Station. Lee, who had served as a judge before practicing law, was appointed to the No. 2 post at the Ministry of Justice on Dec. 2 ami
Social AffairsDec. 19, 2020
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Private general hospitals ordered to offer more intensive-care beds to COVID-19 patients
South Korea's government issued an emergency order earlier this week dictating private hospitals nationwide earmark a certain portion of their intensive-care beds for seriously ill COVID-19 patients, officials said Saturday. The administrative order, the first of its kind, was delivered by the Central Disaster Management Headquarters to all local governments Friday, the officials said, as part of government efforts to cope with the worsening hospital bed shortage caused by a recent surge in cor
Social AffairsDec. 19, 2020