S. Korea, US, Japan urge NK to cease tension escalation, return to dialogue

Top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan urged North Korea to cease activities that escalate tension and return to dialogue and diplomacy at the earliest, following the regime’s recent flurry of missile tests.  The call was made at the three-way session between South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, and his American and Japanese counterparts, Sung Kim and Takehiro Funakoshi, respectively, in Honolulu, Hawaii on Thursday (local time). Both bilateral and tril

Foreign AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Test, trace, treat must go on, says ex-Korea CDC chief

Health authorities were wrong to make omicron out to be flu-like in its impact, according to the former head of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who says the country should bring back efforts to slow the spread to turn around the worst. Speaking at a conference Friday organized by a COVID-19 civic group associated with the Consumers Union of Korea, Dr. Lee Jong-koo, who led the national health protection agency during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, said the Korean governmen

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Education Ministry moves to soothe schools upset with new ‘normalcy attendance’ rules

The Education Ministry has shared additional details to the guidelines of its new “normalcy attendance” scheme for the new semester, apparently taken aback by criticism of the plans. On Monday, the ministry had announced that schools would move to “normalcy” in attendance measures for the new semester. Under the new measure, schools can flexibly change their attendance policy based on a new four-stage plan suggested by the ministry. The new plan, however, has been met

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Lee pledges to seek constitutional revision for renewable, 4-year presidential term

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung pledged Friday to pursue a constitutional revision if elected to change the current single, five-year presidential term to a renewable, four-year term. Lee of the liberal Democratic Party has talked about the idea before, saying he would gladly become the first president to shorten their term to four years. On Friday, he made the plan official by submitting it as part of his 10 top campaign pledges to the National Election Commission, the electio

PoliticsFeb. 11, 2022

Supreme Court upholds 30-yr prison terms for couple over fatal child abuse

The Supreme Court on Friday confirmed a lower court's 30-year prison sentences for a couple in their 20s convicted of abusing and starving their 8-year-old daughter to death. The third-grade elementary school child died at their home in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, in March last year after suffering nearly three years of maltreatment and violence by her biological mother and stepfather, 29 and 28 years old, respectively. The top court also approved a lower court order that the couple un

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

[Newsmaker] After being called feminists, these women faced online harassment

The death of livestreamer Jammi, whose real name is Cho Jang-mi, made headlines this week in South Korea. It emerged that she took her own life after “suffering severe depression over malicious online comments and rumors,” according to an online post written by one of her family members. The 27-year-old who used to stream on YouTube and Twitch was accused of being a radical feminist in 2019. The accusations began after she used a pinching hand sign that some claimed to be misandri

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

3.1 magnitude natural quake hits near N. Korea's nuclear test site: KMA

A 3.1 magnitude natural earthquake hit near North Korea's nuclear testing site Friday, South Korea's state weather agency said. The quake occurred about 40 kilometers north-northwest of Kilju, North Hamgyong Province, at 10:35 a.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). Kilju is where North Korea's Punggye-ri nuclear testing site is located. A total of 25 earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.0 or bigger have struck regions near Kilju since 1978, with a 3.2 magnitude quake th

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Yoon leads Lee 48% to 36%, 37% to 36%: polls

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol is leading his ruling party rival Lee Jae-myung by 12 percentage points and 1 percentage point, respectively, two polls showed Friday. Yoon of the conservative People Power Party received 48 percent support, while Lee of the liberal Democratic Party received 36 percent, according to a survey of 1,000 adults conducted by Research View on Wednesday and Thursday. Yoon gained 2 points from last week, while Lee lost 2 points. According to a sepa

PoliticsFeb. 11, 2022

4 dead, 4 injured in factory explosion in Yeosu: officials

An explosion rocked a petrochemical factory in the southern city of Yeosu on Friday, leaving four workers dead and four others injured, police said. The explosion occurred at 9:26 a.m. at the Yeochun NCC Co. factory in Yeosu, about 320 km south of Seoul, and eight people were believed to be at the scene at the time. Of them, four died and four were taken to a hospital with injuries. Police and firefighters believe the explosion occurred during a testing of the factory's heat exchange system and

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Military reports 401 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Friday reported 401 additional COVID-19 cases, raising the total caseload among its domestic personnel to 7,908. The new cases included 247 from the Army, 74 from the Air Force, 51 from the Marine Corps, 17 from the Navy, 11 from units under the direct control of the defense ministry and one from the ministry. Currently, 3,000 military personnel are under treatment. (Yonhap)

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

N. Korea slams EU criticism of missile launches

North Korea has condemned the European Union's criticism of its series of missile launches last month, calling it an "intolerable" act of interfering in its internal affairs. In a message posted Thursday on the foreign ministry's website, Ri Sang-rim, chairman of the North's Korea-Europe Association, took issue with the EU's recent statement denouncing its missile tests as a threat to international and regional peace and security, "We flatly denounce and reject this as this is a f

North KoreaFeb. 11, 2022

Man gets 10-month prison term for verbally abusing COVID-19 testing center nurse

A 62-year-old man has been sentenced to 10 months in prison for cursing at and speaking violently to a nurse conducting a COVID-19 test on him, court officials said Friday. The man was convicted of verbally abusing the 31-year-old nurse working at a COVID-19 testing center in Seoul in December 2020, telling her in a threatening way to gently push the nasal swab into his nose. "You are a public servant, right? If I file a complaint, you'll get fired," he said, cursing at her and poundin

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

UNICEF provides nutrition supplies for 160,000 N. Korean pregnant women

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has provided North Korea with micronutrient treatments for 160,000 pregnant and lactating women, according to its recent report. The items are the first supplies from UNICEF delivered to the reclusive North after it reopened western sea routes in October following monthslong border controls against the COVID-19 pandemic. "After several months in quarantine at Nampo port, the first batch of nutrition supplies was released from disinfection, includi

North KoreaFeb. 11, 2022

S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases over 50,000 for 2nd day amid raging omicron

South Korea's daily COVID-19 infections stayed above 50,000 for the second day in a row Friday amid the fast spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant across the nation. The country reported 53,926 new COVID-19 infections, including 53,797 local cases, raising the total to 1,239,287, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). It marks the second day in a row that the daily tally exceeded the 50,000 level. A daily record high of 54,122 was reported Thursday.

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Govt. considering placing price ceiling on COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits: PM

The government is considering placing a price ceiling on COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday, as at-home testing and treatment has become a key element of the government's COVID-19 response. Kim made the remark during a COVID-19 response meeting in Seoul as the government tries to ensure the stable supply of self-test kits following the initiation of an enhanced at-home treatment system amid soaring virus cases. Driven by the highly transmissible omicron v

Social AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

Top nuclear envoys of S. Korea, US, Japan meet over ways to engage with N. Korea

HONOLULU -- The top nuclear negotiators of South Korea, Japan and the United States discussed ways to engage with North Korea in what they called very "productive" and "substantive" discussions held here in Honolulu on Thursday. "We had a very good discussion -- very detailed, substantive discussion about recent developments," US Special Representative for the DPRK Sung Kim told reporters after his bilateral and trilateral meetings here with South Korea's Noh Kyu-d

Foreign AffairsFeb. 11, 2022

South Korean Diplomat Attacked In New York: Seoul

A South Korean diplomat was injured after being attacked by an "unidentified man" in New York, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday. The man was randomly attacked on a Manhattan sidewalk, according to a report in the New York Post, which said he was "slugged in the face". Seoul confirmed that a diplomat at the country's United Nations mission had been injured. "A diplomat affiliated to the UN mission was attacked by an unidentified man in downtown Manhattan on the

NationalFeb. 10, 2022

Moon hits back after Yoon says he will probe ‘deep-rooted evils’

President Moon Jae-in hit back Thursday at opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol’s statement that he would order a probe into Moon’s government for corruption and irregularities if elected president. “I am deeply resentful of (Yoon’s remarks) accusing this government as subject to corruption investigations without any evidence. I demand his apology,” Moon was quoted as saying by Park Soo-hyun, senior presidential secretary for public communication. &l

PoliticsFeb. 10, 2022

35,000 electric car chargers to be installed in Seoul this year

The city of Seoul will receive citizens' applications to choose sites for new electric vehicle chargers as part of its plan to supply 35,000 charging stations in the capital this year, city officials said Thursday. About 22,000 EV chargers will be installed in the city with the support of the Seoul metropolitan government while about 12,000 units will be set up by the environment ministry and other agencies, they said. The city government will receive citizens' applications for one month from ne

Social AffairsFeb. 10, 2022

Attacks continue against Lee’s wife despite apology

Attacks against the ruling Democratic Party of Korea‘s presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s wife have continued despite Wednesday’s apology, with opposition parties contending she failed to address the key points of the controversy. Kim Hye-kyung, the wife of Lee, apologized at a press conference, saying she failed to draw distinctions between public and private life in reference to her alleged abuses of power while her husband previously served as the governor of Gyeongg

PoliticsFeb. 10, 2022