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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Seoul aims to halve current suicide rate by 2030
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4 in 10 young South Koreans take up 'irregular' jobs: data
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[Photo News] Rallying against LGBTQ+
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103 autumn foliage paths in Seoul
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[News Focus] Jeju has highest proportion of registered foreign residents for 4th year
SEJONG -- The number of foreigners per 1,000 population in South Korea reached the all-time high of 24.53 at the end of 2019, data held by Statistics Korea showed. The figure was based on the number of registered foreign residents, 1.27 million, of the nation’s resident registered-based population, 51.84 million, as of last year. The figure does not include people in Korea on F-4 visas, because they are not registered as residents here. The proportion of registered foreign residents cl
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Top prosecutor's mother-in-law indicted over medical law violation, fraud
The prosecution on Tuesday indicted the mother-in-law of Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl on charges of violating the medical law and fraud. Prosecutors believe the 74-year-old woman, surnamed Choi, established a medical foundation to run a long-term care hospital for seniors in November 2012 even though she was not qualified to do so. The hospital was caught for illegally receiving 2.29 billion won ($2.06 million) in medical care insurance allowances for two years from May 2013, according to
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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[Newsmaker] KCTU to launch nationwide rallies Wednesday despite COVID-19 surge
The largest umbrella labor group in South Korea is sticking to its plans to launch a general strike and nationwide rallies Wednesday, despite warnings from authorities about the COVID-19 situation. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions said Tuesday that the one-day walkout will go ahead as previously announced, and striking members will take to the streets in small groups throughout the country. In the capital, rallies of nine people or fewer at various locations are planned in accordance
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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[News Analysis] Blinken likely to pursue multilateral, step-by-step approach on NK
US President-elect Joe Biden named Antony Blinken, his closest foreign policy adviser who also served as deputy secretary of state in the Obama administration, as his secretary of state, drawing attention to how he will go about dealing with North Korea. Blinken has advocated multilateral efforts for sustained diplomacy and a step-by-step approach on North Korea’s nuclear program. Blinken has also said before that the 2015 deal on Iran’s nuclear program, reached between Iran and si
North KoreaNov. 24, 2020
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‘N. Korean who jumped border fence into South was gymnast’
A North Korean man who fled here early this month said he used to be a gymnast and was able to jump over the 3-meter fence along the inter-Korean border, a Seoul official familiar with the matter said Monday. The man, reportedly of small stature and in his late 20s, has been under investigation by Seoul’s defense authorities over his defection route and motives. Seoul officials had him jump twice to verify his claim. Authorities suspect his light body weight and gymnastics experience co
North KoreaNov. 24, 2020
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Nighttime bus services reduced; Daycare centers closed in Seoul
Level 2 social distancing measures were restored in the capital region beginning Tuesday, but Seoul has enacted its own, tighter rules through the rest of the year. In what the city government called an “emergency standstill,” nighttime bus service has been slashed by 20 percent from Tuesday. Starting Friday, there will be no subway operations after 11 p.m., an hour earlier than the current closing time. The changes in bus service take effect Tuesday, and the new subway hours sta
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Main opposition to push for third round of emergency virus handouts
The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) will push to include funds for an additional third round of coronavirus-related emergency handouts in next year's state budget, a senior party official said Tuesday. "To help out the damaged sectors of taxi services, indoor gyms, private learning institutes and PC cafes hit by the third wave of COVID-19 and provide emergency livelihood support to households, we will provide emergency funds worth some 3.6 trillion won ($3.23 billion) to places in
PoliticsNov. 24, 2020
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[Newsmaker] Seoul area soldiers could miss vacation, off-base visits
Soldiers based in the Greater Seoul area could see their vacation and off-base leave suspended under the military’s tightened antivirus measures that went into effect Tuesday. The military began enforcing tougher rules in the capital for two weeks through Dec. 3, in line with government-imposed Level 2 social distancing guidelines in the area. The country, in the onset of a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, reported 349 cases in 24 hours ending at midnight on Monday. All servic
DefenseNov. 24, 2020
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Panmunjom tours to remain in operation despite toughened social distancing scheme
A recently resumed tour program to the truce village of Panmunjom will remain in operation despite this week's toughened social distancing measures against the coronavirus, as necessary preventive steps have already been enforced, a unification ministry official said Tuesday. The tours to the Joint Security Area (JSA) and other sites inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas resumed earlier this month after more than a year of suspension due to the outbreak of African swine
North KoreaNov. 24, 2020
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S. Korea to develop indigenous robot for explosives detection, removal
South Korea's arms procurement agency signed a contract commissioning a local defense firm to develop a robot capable of detecting and removing land mines and other explosives with indigenous technology, officials said Tuesday. Under the 18 billion-won ($16 million) project, Hanwha Defense plans to develop a robot capable of patrolling the mine-strewn Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border with North Korea and other dangerous areas, detecting and eliminating explosives, according to the Defense
DefenseNov. 24, 2020
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PM warns of tough disciplinary measures against public servants ignoring distancing rules
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Tuesday urged public servants to maintain the utmost level of readiness against COVID-19, warning those who contract the virus by not complying with distancing rules will face grave disciplinary measures. "In cases of slack discipline in the public sector, such as cases where public office workers test positive by not complying with antivirus measures, we will gravely seek disciplinary measures," Chung said during a Cabinet meeting at the government co
PoliticsNov. 24, 2020
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S. Korea to ban free-range poultry through Feb. amid bird flu outbreak
South Korea said Tuesday it has decided to ban free-range chickens and ducks until early next year as the nation is struggling to prevent the outbreak of avian influenza. Local farms will be advised to keep poultry indoors to prevent them from coming in contact with wild birds or their droppings, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The ban came as the country has reported six cases of a highly pathogenic strain of bird flu across the country since late October, wi
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Troops in greater Seoul area under tighter anti-coronavirus scheme
The defense ministry on Tuesday began enforcing tougher social distancing rules for service members in the Seoul metropolitan area in line with the government's elevation of the antivirus scheme. Under the social distancing scheme of Level 2, vacations and one-day off-installation trips are primarily restricted. Visits to nightlife facilities continue to be banned, and service members are not allowed to visit religious facilities outside their bases, according to the ministry. The Level 2 gui
DefenseNov. 24, 2020
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Forgo year-end gathering plans: health authority
Health authorities on Tuesday urged members of the public to minimize social contact to help rein in a nationwide wave of COVID-19 infections as the country’s new daily cases bounced back to over 300. The country reported 349 new coronavirus cases -- 320 locally transmitted and 29 imported from overseas -- in the 24 hours ending Monday at midnight, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. “Please forgo your plans for year-end gatherings this year to preven
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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1 killed, 23 injured in Busan apartment fire
BUSAN -- A fire broke out at an apartment building in the southeastern city of Busan on Tuesday, leaving one dead and 23 injured, fire authorities said. The fire started at around 6:50 a.m. on the 12th floor of a 24-story apartment building in the northern ward of Geumjeong in the city, some 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. A man in his 40s was found dead in the bedroom of his home on the 12th floor, while 23 others, including his teenage son, have been sent to a nearby hospital for smoke i
Social AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Maryland Gov. Hogan defends S. Korea-made COVID test kits as effective
WASHINGTON -- Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Monday dismissed news reports that South Korean-made new coronavirus test kits were defective, saying the kits have been and continue to be "the cornerstone" of the state's long-term testing strategy. "While the entire testing process has been a struggle at the federal and state levels, and there have been and continue to be challenges, these Korean test kits represent one of the greatest success stories of our battle against COVID-19,&q
Foreign AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Biegun likely to visit S. Korea next month: sources
WASHINGTON -- US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun may visit South Korea next month as part of a multi-nation Asia tour, diplomatic sources here said Monday. The trip is expected to take place in early December, and Biegun is set to be accompanied by Alex Wong, deputy assistant secretary of state for North Korea, multiple sources told Yonhap News Agency, asking not to be identified. Biegun's trip to South Korea, if made, will mark the first of its kind since July. His trip, however, wi
Foreign AffairsNov. 24, 2020
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Antibody tests reveal undetected infections among people in 20s
Antibody tests on young enlistees in the nation’s military showed immunity levels three times higher than average for all age groups, government data revealed Monday. Of the 6,959 enlisted soldiers aged between 20 and 22, whose samples were collected in September and October, 15 tested positive without having been previously diagnosed with COVID-19. Ten others with a history of COVID-19 also tested positive. This means 0.22 percent of the people considered uninfected had an immune r
Social AffairsNov. 23, 2020
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XR exhibition to open at Incheon Airport
An exhibition of extended reality content will open at Incheon Airport on Tuesday, as part of the 24th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. Co-organized by the Embassy of France in Seoul and the French Institute, the exhibition, titled “Beyond Reality over Incheon Airport,” will run from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Dec. 13 at the airport’s Terminal 1. Under the theme of “traveling,” the exhibition features virtual reality projects – 360-degree vide
Social AffairsNov. 23, 2020
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Watchdog advises police to guarantee interpretation service to foreign nationals during probe
The state human rights watchdog on Monday advised police to make interpretation services available when questioning foreign nationals involved in a criminal case. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) advised the National Police Agency chief to improve the system and remove language barriers in order to protect the lawful rights of foreign nationals under investigation. The recommendation came as a result of a petition by a South Korean woman to the commission that her Morocca
Social AffairsNov. 23, 2020