Military reports 104 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Thursday reported 104 additional COVID-19 cases, including 101 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 4,284. Of the new military cases, 79 are from the Army, 15 from the Air Force, two from the Marine Corps, two from units under the direct control of the ministry, and two from the Combined Forces Command. There were also cases from the Navy, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and the Defense Me

Jan. 27, 2022

S. Korea's daily COVID-19 cases surpass 14,000 amid rapid omicron spread

South Korea's daily COVID-19 cases hit over 14,000 on Thursday, breaking the record for a third consecutive day as the highly contagious omicron variant spreads across the country at an unprecedented speed. The country reported 14,518 COVID-19 infections, including 14,301 local infections, bringing the total to 777,497, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. South Korea posted the first five-digit daily tally of 13,012 on Wednesday, following the previous record high of 8

Jan. 27, 2022

S. Korea confirms highly pathogenic bird flu case in southwestern region

South Korea reported another case of highly pathogenic avian influenza at a duck farm on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases in poultry to 26 this winter season. The latest case was reported at the farm raising around 25,000 ducks in Buan county, 280 kilometers south of Seoul in North Jeolla Province, according to the agriculture ministry. The government has alerted local poultry farm owners to increasing outbreaks of avian influenza as of late, urging them to immediately report an

Jan. 26, 2022

Backstage staff member wins 2022 Unsung Hero Award

A backstage staff worker at Stage Art Center was named the winner of the 2022 Unsung Hero Award, arranged by the Shinil Educational Foundation. The foundation held the awards ceremony at the Seoul Cyber University on Monday, shining a spotlight on those who have been working in the performing arts scene off the stage. The awards are given to both individuals and groups. Lee Byeong-seob, who works at Stage Art Center, a public institution that rents out costumes, props and stage settings to pr

Jan. 26, 2022

S. Korea‘s daily COVID-19 cases surpass 13,000 amid omicron wave

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases topped 13,000 as of midnight Tuesday due to the rapid spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant. It was the first time that South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases surpasses 10,000 in 737 days since the country saw its first confirmed COVID-19 case on January 20. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Wednesday, the country added 13,012 COVID-19 cases, posting a dramatic increase from that of the previous

Jan. 26, 2022

Seoul's daily COVID-19 tally reaches all-time high of 3,178 cases

The daily COVID-19 tally of Seoul shot up to an all-time high of 3,178 cases Wednesday amid the fast spread of the omicron variant, officials said. It marks the second time ever the capital's daily tally has exceeded 3,000 after 3,166 cases were recorded on Dec. 15. Wednesday's total marked a steep jump from 1,724 cases registered a day earlier, according to the Seoul city officials. The city's accumulated COVID-19 cases stood at 257,330 cases Wednesday, about two years after the coronavirus f

Jan. 26, 2022

Number of foreigners staying in S. Korea decreased 3.9% in 2021 amid pandemic

The number of foreign nationals staying in South Korea shrank nearly 4 percent on-year in 2021 amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Korea Immigration Office said Wednesday. The number was tallied at 1.96 million as of the end of last year, a 3.9 percent decrease from 2.04 million in 2020 and down 23 percent from a record high of 2.52 million in 2019. They include 1.57 million long-term residents and 386,000 people staying for fewer than 90 days. its data showed. It is the first time that the fo

Jan. 26, 2022

S. Korea's childbirths at record low in Nov.

The number of babies born in South Korea fell to a record low in November last year, data showed Wednesday, underpinning the country's gloomy demographic situation with the chronically low birth rate. A total of 19,800 babies were born in November, down 1.3 percent from the previous year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. It marked the lowest for any November since 1981, when the statistics agency began compiling related data. In the first 11 months of last year, 244,016 bab

Jan. 26, 2022

Smuggled drugs hit record high in 2021 amid pandemic

Drug smuggling caught by South Korea's customs agency hit a record high last year as trafficking via non-contact delivery means shot up amid the COVID-19 pandemic, data showed Wednesday. The Korea Customs Service said it confiscated a total of 1,272 kilograms of drugs in 2021, up 757 percent from the previous year. Drug smuggling via international mail and cargo sharply increased as drug delivery by international travelers declined due to the pandemic, according to the customs agency. The con

Jan. 26, 2022

Military reports 160 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Wednesday reported 160 additional COVID-19 cases, including 147 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 4,180. The latest virus count was up from 78 reported the previous day as the military remains on high alert to fight the omicron variant. The country as a whole added 13,012 new cases Wednesday. Of the new military cases, 101 are from the Army, 28 from the Air Force, 15 from the Navy, five from the Marine Corps and 11 from units u

Jan. 26, 2022

Man gets 7-yr prison term for selling marijuana on dark web

A man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for forming a criminal organization and distributing marijuana in South Korea through the dark web, a court said Wednesday. The 40-year-old man, surnamed Kim, was found to have created a criminal organization with six accomplices and sold 1,992 grams of marijuana worth about 230 million won ($192,000) from 2017 to April after growing the plant at an isolated factory building. They were paid in cryptocurrency from buyers on the dark web, an area

Jan. 26, 2022

[Breaking] Omicron-hit Korea sets record 13,000+ cases: PM

South Korea for the first time entered five digits in daily new COVID-19 cases for Wednesday, just days after omicron officially replaced delta as the dominant variant here. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum told a meeting of the government COVID-19 response headquarters that in the latest 24 hours 13,012 cases had been recorded -- marking a stark jump from the prior record of 8,571 cases set the previous day. “Omicron spread is beginning,” the prime minister said. &l

Jan. 26, 2022

S. Korea reports over 9,000 COVID-19 cases on a single day

South Korea is hinted to report nearly 10,000 cases for a single day as coronavirus variant outbreak continues to take center stage in the ongoing pandemic. The Yonhap News Agency reported late Tuesday afternoon that South Korea reported 9,218 cases as of 9 p.m. Tuesday with the number of cases escalating due to increasing prevalence of omicron variant of coronavirus cases. A day earlier, South Korea reported 8,571 cases throughout Monday, according to tally form the Korea Disease Control and

Jan. 25, 2022

Rescuers discover missing person at collapsed construction site in Gwangju

Rescue workers found personal items presumed to be from a missing worker at the site of a collapsed apartment building under construction in the southwestern city of Gwangju on Tuesday. Work clothing and bloodstains were detected at a room on the 27th floor of the damaged building in Gwangju, about 330 kilometers south of Seoul, as the search and rescue operation continued for 14 days, according to the local disaster management authorities. They assumed that one of the five workers still mis

Jan. 25, 2022

S. Korean lawmaker’s son, rapper No:el, assaults police, video shows

Chang Yong-joon, better known as rapper No:el and the son of lawmaker Rep. Chang Je-won, had insulted and assaulted a police officer after refusing to comply with a breathalyzer test that followed a car accident in September, according to a video shown in court. Prosecutors revealed the video during a trial at Seoul Central District Court on Monday, where Chang refused to admit his noncompliance with the breathalyzer test and that he had physically attacked a police officer. In the video, Ch

Jan. 25, 2022

Gwanghwamun Square to reopen after complete makeover

Central Seoul’s iconic Gwanghwamun Square will reopen to the public in July after undergoing a complete makeover, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Thursday. The symbolic square, which has been under construction since November 2020, will return doubled in size to include a park, adding more green space to the area, the city said. According to the city government, the total size of the square has increased from 18,840 square meters to 40,300 square meters. After turning some o

Jan. 25, 2022

S. Korea records all-time high daily COVID-19 cases amid omicron surge

South Korea‘s daily coronavirus cases hit an all-time high of 8,571 as of midnight Monday, with the quickly spreading omicron variant now dominant, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Tuesday. It is the first time the daily figure has topped 8,000 cases dating back to when the country reported the first COVID-19 infection in January 2020. The previous all-time high was 7,848 on Dec. 15, 2021. Despite the sudden increase in daily cases, the number of critically ill CO

Jan. 25, 2022

‘How’s your belly doing?’ An innocent campaign or obsession with body shape?

When Diana Nordeus encountered a large wooden frame installed at a highway rest area in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province, last September with a supposedly cute sign saying, “How’s your belly doing?” she couldn’t just laugh it off.  To her, it seemed like yet another blatant display of Korean society’s obsession with thinness, with which she has had some first-hand experience.  “I was very malnourished when I first came to Korea in May last year and the

Jan. 25, 2022

Jeju expecting 207,000 visitors during Lunar New Year holiday: tourism association

JEJU -- More than 200,000 people are expected to travel to Jeju Island during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday despite growing concerns over the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant, according to travel industry officials Tuesday. According to the Jeju Tourism Association, the number of visitors to the resort island during the extended holiday period, from Saturday to Feb. 2, is expected to reach 207,000, up 35.2 percent from a year ago. The number of scheduled Jeju-bound flights durin

Jan. 25, 2022

New Gwanghwamun Square to open in July with fresh attractions

Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul will reopen in July after completing over 1 1/2 years of renovation that will more than double the total area, including tripling the space for trees and other plants, the city government said Tuesday. The square, located in front of the royal Gyeongbok Palace and the US Embassy, has been one of the must-visit places for tourists and citizens. Since November 2020, construction has been under way to expand the square from 18,840 square meters to 40,300 square

Jan. 25, 2022