[Photo News] Building snowman

A child makes a snowman at a playground in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province on Saturday. The weather agency issued heavy snow advisories for Incheon, Daejeon and many other western parts of the country. Authorities said they expect 5 to 15 centimeters of snow in North and South Jeolla provinces.

Dec. 17, 2022

S. Korea's COVID-19 cases above 60,000 for 5th day

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases remained above 60,000 for the fifth straight day Saturday amid concerns of a surge in cases during the winter season. The country reported 66,930 new COVID-19 infections, including 56 from overseas, bringing the total to 28,129,431, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. It marks the highest daily figure for a Saturday in 15 weeks, after the country reported 79,708 cases on Sept. 3. The daily caseload jumped to over 86,000 on Tuesday, t

Dec. 17, 2022

S. Korean lunar orbiter's key trajectory maneuver proceeds successfully: KARI

South Korea's first lunar orbiter Danuri started entering the orbit of the moon Saturday, 135 days after its launch, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) said. The unmanned space vehicle carried out its first lunar orbit insertion (LOI) maneuver at 2:45 a.m., KARI said, as part of five rounds of such maneuvers in the coming days for Danuri to be captured in the lunar orbit on Dec. 29. In the first maneuver, KARI researchers used Danuri's thrusters for about 13 minutes to slow

Dec. 17, 2022

Heavy snow advisories issued for western parts of S. Korea

The weather agency issued heavy snow advisories Saturday for Incheon, Daejeon and many other western parts of the country. The interior ministry also raised the disaster alert level to "caution," the third highest in the four-tier system, as of 7 a.m. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) forecast 5 to 15 centimeters of snow will fall in western parts of South Chungcheong and North and South Jeolla provinces Saturday. Jeju Island and coastal areas of North and South Jeolla pr

Dec. 17, 2022

SPC Chairman Hur indicted on breach of trust charges

Prosecutors on Friday indicted Hur Young-in, the chair of the nation's largest bakery chain, SPC Group, on breach of trust charges for underselling stocks held by group affiliates in a suspected attempt to evade the gift tax. Hur was accused of selling stocks of Mildawon, a grain company wholly owned by his family, at 255 won ($0.19) per share in December 2012, far cheaper than the estimated 2011 price of 1,180 won or their 2008 acquisition price of 3,038 won. The chairman allegedly dumped

Dec. 16, 2022

Bereaved families bid farewell to Itaewon victims on 49th day after deaths

Heavy-hearted tears fell down the faces of some 150 bereaved families of the Itaewon tragedy Friday morning as a 49th-day memorial service was given for the souls of the deceased at Jogye Temple in Jongno-gu, central Seoul. Under Buddhist belief, the deceased's spirit leaves the human world after lingering 49 days after death. At the main Daeungjeon Hall within the compound of Jogye Temple, the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, South Korea’s largest Buddhism sect, expressed condolences

Dec. 16, 2022

S. Korea's COVID-19 cases above 60,000 for 4th day amid virus surge worries

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed above 60,000 for the fourth straight day Friday amid lingering concerns of another surge as the government mulls easing the indoor mask mandate. The country reported 66,953 new COVID-19 infections, including 82 from overseas, bringing the total to 28,062,679, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The daily caseload jumped to 86,852 on Tuesday, the highest in three months since Sept. 14, when the daily figure reached 93,949. Daily infec

Dec. 16, 2022

Residents of Daegu protest mosque construction with pork barbecue

Residents of Daehyeon-dong in Daegu in opposition to the construction of a mosque in the neighborhood on Thursday cooked a whole pig near the construction site, stepping up the ongoing clash with Muslim residents of the city. On the same day, the Daegu anti-mosque committee, which was formed to stop the construction, held a press conference at the west gate of Kyungpook National University, announcing the assault by a Pakistani international student. “The Pakistani student was charged with

Dec. 16, 2022

Videos of deadly car accident create suspicions of 'sudden acceleration'

Footage from a deadly car crash in Gangneung, Gangwon Provinc is raising public suspicions about whether the cause was “sudden unintended acceleration.” The videos of the accident show a car driven by a 68-year-old woman running amok for about 600 meters on Dec. 6. The car crashed into a trench by the road, claiming her 12-year-old grandson’s life and leaving the driver seriously injured. “Oh my God, why doesn’t this work? Oh, something is wrong,“ the frighten

Dec. 15, 2022

[Feature] Korea is no country for long names

When Vittoria Oliveira de Souza Ventura came to South Korea from her native country of Brazil five years ago, she didn’t expect her name to cause trouble. “My full name is more than 25 characters long (in the English alphabet) and I was denied access to many services because name registration was not possible,” Ventura told The Korea Herald. When written in Hangeul -- the Korean alphabet -- her full name is 16 characters long, compared to most Korean names' three. “I&rsqu

Dec. 15, 2022

Key suspect of land corruption scandal hospitalized

A key suspect of a high-profile land corruption scandal in South Korea was sent to hospital Thursday after he stabbed himself with a knife in an apparent suicide attempt. The suspect Kim Man-bae was in stable condition, but was hospitalized in an intensive care unit of Ajou University Hospital in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, due to injuries in his neck and chest. Kim was found by his attorney inside his private car on Wednesday. Kim, a former journalist, is one of the shareholders in asset manageme

Dec. 15, 2022

Mother apprehended over murder of blind 4-year-old daughter

A woman in her 20s has been taken into custody, charged with murdering her blind 4-year-old daughter on Thursday, authorities said. The 26-year-old mother is accused of repeatedly beating the 4-year-old on Wednesday around 6 a.m., at home in Geumjeong-gu, Busan. The 4-year-old was taken to the hospital later that day at around 7:35 p.m. when the mother found her unconscious, but the child was already dead before arrival. Police immediately apprehended the mother, following the doctor's repo

Dec. 15, 2022

UAE official sent to Korean prosecution for sexual harassment

An official from the United Arab Emirates government who participated in an international conference in South Korea was handed over to the prosecution on charges of sexually harassing a Korean female staff member. According to police and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on Wednesday, a local secretary accompanying the UAE's health minister is alleged to have sexually harassed a Korean female worker at the Global Health Security Agenda meeting event in Seoul on Nov. 30. The GH

Dec. 15, 2022

Arrest warrants sought for two men in high-profile development scandal

Prosecutors sought arrest warrants Thursday for two men on suspicion of helping a key suspect in a high-profile real estate development scandal conceal his assets. The scandal centers on the allegations that a small private asset management company, Hwacheon Daeyu, was allowed to reap astronomical investment profits from the development project in Daejang-dong in Seongnam, just south of Seoul. Lee Han-sung, co-CEO of Hwacheon Daeyu, and Choi Woo-hyang, director of the company, allegedly helped t

Dec. 15, 2022

S. Korea's COVID-19 cases over 70,000 for third day amid virus surge worries

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed above 70,000 for the third straight day Thursday amid lingering concerns of another surge as the government mulls easing the indoor mask mandate. The country reported 70,154 new COVID-19 infections, including 38 from overseas, bringing the total to 27,995,726, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The daily caseload jumped to 86,852 on Tuesday, the highest in three months since Sept. 14, when the daily figure reached 93,949, KDCA data

Dec. 15, 2022

Heavy snowfall forecast to hit S. Korea's capital, central areas

Heavy snow was forecast to hit South Korea's capital and central regions Thursday, with some parts of the Gyeonggi, Gangwon and North Chungcheong provinces predicted to see snowfalls of more than 10 centimeters, the weather agency said. Beginning in the morning, the greater Seoul area, parts of the Gangwon, North Chungcheong and South Chungcheong provinces are likely to receive snowfall between 3 cm and 8 cm, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. Eastern parts of Gyeonggi, central and so

Dec. 15, 2022

Bereaved families of Itaewon crush victims set up mourning altar near accident site

Bereaved families of those killed in the deadly Itaewon crowd crush opened a mourning altar near the site of the tragedy Wednesday, claiming the government failed to take steps honoring the victims, such as setting up a memorial. The launch of the mourning shrine at Itaewon Square came nearly one and half months after the deadly crowd crush that killed 158 people as angry bereaved families ratcheted up calls for an "unrestrained" investigation into the bungled government response to th

Dec. 14, 2022

Fire breaks out at Namdaemun market

A building in Namdaemun market in central Seoul caught fire on Wednesday evening. The fire authority estimates that a temporary building near exit three of the large market caught fire at around 7:52 p.m. Emergency responders are working to contain the blaze, and a total of 77 firefighters arrived on the scene in 21 fire engines. There are no reports of injury or deaths as of 10 p.m.

Dec. 14, 2022

Seoul city to open first shelters for stalking victims Thursday

Seoul city will officially provide shelters specifically for stalking victims, both for female and male victims, starting this Thursday. Three shelters will open, two for female victims and one for male victims. Shelters for women can house up to 10 people and four people can be housed in the male shelter. Most stalking crimes occur near the victim's residence, so shelters offer victims immediate protection. According to a survey by Seoul city and Namurights, a non-profit organization for

Dec. 14, 2022

Despite cold eyes, disabled on wheelchair continue subway protests

While the season’s freezing temperatures gripped South Korea on Wednesday morning, a group of disabled protesters on wheelchairs staged their rush-hour subway protests at around 8 a.m. -- once again paralyzing train operations at Samgakji Station on Seoul’s subway Line No. 4. The 15 protesters are from Solidarity Against Disability Discrimination, Korea’s largest disability rights group. Protesters usually stand in front of subway doors to stop people from entering and exiting,

Dec. 14, 2022