Most Popular
-
1
[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
-
2
Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
-
3
Yoon calls for measures to protect Koreans amid escalating Iran-Israel conflicts
-
4
Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
-
5
Civil servant’s death linked to workplace bullying
-
6
Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
-
7
[Weekender] Walk around Korea to really get to know the country
-
8
N. Korea slams Seoul-Washington joint air exercise
-
9
[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
-
10
[Herald Interview] K-pop’s 'best years are ahead of us': Spotify’s general manager for Asia Pacific
-
[Newsmaker] Ex-vice minister jailed for 30 months for taking bribes
Former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-ui was sentenced to 30 months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for business favors. The Seoul High Court handed down the sentence Wednesday, overturning a lower court ruling last year that cleared Kim of all charges due to lack of evidence and the statute of limitations. Kim, who served as vice justice minister in 2013, was accused of having received sexual services arranged by a local developer, Yoon Joong-chun, on 13 occasions and having recei
Social AffairsOct. 28, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] School counselor arrested for allegedly leaking SAT questions
A former high school counselor suspected of leaking copies of a US college entrance exam was arrested in Seoul late Tuesday night. The man, identified only by the surname Lee, is under police investigation for allegedly taking photos of US Scholastic Aptitude Test papers for three years beginning in 2017 while he was working as a career counselor at the Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies, a high school in Gyeonggi Province, and selling them to a broker. The broker, arrested last month, is alleg
Social AffairsOct. 28, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Samsung heir may get promoted to chairman following father's passing
Speculation is growing over when Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong would take the position of chairman in South Korea's largest conglomerate following his father's death, industry insiders said Tuesday, though the heir has already been recognized as the tech giant's de facto leader. His father and a longtime Samsung Group head, Lee Kun-hee, died Sunday at age 78, more than six years after being hospitalized for a heart attack. Jae-yong, the eldest scion and the only son of the l
IndustryOct. 27, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] N. Korea slams S. Korea for ‘serving’ US
A North Korean propaganda outlet slammed South Korea on Monday for “serving” the US in a display of servility, saying Washington is returning only complications on ongoing disputes with Seoul. “Ranking officials in Seoul have paid numerous visits to Washington since October. … Their alliance is a combination of subjugation and subordination where Seoul is held hostage,” the propaganda outlet Maeari said, referring to the prolonged disputes over defense costs-shar
North KoreaOct. 26, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Lee Kun-hee: 'Hermit king' of the Samsung empire
South Korea's richest and most powerful industrialist, Lee Kun-hee, turned Samsung Electronics into one of the world's biggest tech companies but lived a reclusive existence. Still, occasional pronouncements on business by the tycoon, who died at 78 on Sunday, reverberated through the country. When he inherited the chairmanship of the Samsung group in 1987 -- founded by his father as a fish and fruit exporter -- it was already the country's largest conglomerate, with operations ranging from co
IndustryOct. 25, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Family of man killed by NK slams government
The family of the South Korean official killed by North Korean soldiers in North Korean waters continued to accuse the government of “dishonoring” the deceased man by saying he defected to the North due to financial difficulties. The Coast Guard said Thursday that the official, whose job was guiding fishing boats near the inter-Korean maritime border, had been heavily involved in online gambling and had wired gambling money shortly before he went missing. The bereaved family’
Social AffairsOct. 23, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Flu shot fears growing further as suspected deaths pile up
Concerns over seasonal flu shots grew further on Friday as deaths after vaccinations swelled to over 30, with health experts split over whether to go ahead with a state-led free shot program amid a potential "twindemic" of the new coronavirus and the flu. Although no connection has been confirmed between the recent fatalities and vaccines, public fears have been mounting in South Korea over flu shots. Since the first suspected death from a flu shot was reported last Friday, 36 have d
Social AffairsOct. 23, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] N. Korea denuclearization a step toward end-of-war declaration: Pompeo
North Korea’s denuclearization would ultimately lead to the declaration of an official end to the Korean War, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday. The two Koreas are still at war, having signed no peace treaty to end the 1950-53 conflict. Pompeo was addressing questions about whether ending the war would be feasible without the North’s disarmament. President Moon Jae-in has repeatedly called for an end-of-war declaration. The top US diplomat again urged Pyongyang to c
North KoreaOct. 22, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Doctors Without Borders to help NK address COVID-19
An international health charity received UN approval for an exemption from sanctions against North Korea so it can help the country tackle COVID-19 and tuberculosis. The UN Security Council’s committee on sanctions against North Korea said Wednesday that it had approved a sanctions exemption for Doctors Without Borders, known by the French abbreviation MSF, to support North Korea with nutrition aid, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, and COVID-19 response measures. MSF plans to ru
North KoreaOct. 21, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] S. Korea investigating teen death’s link to heat-exposed flu vaccine
Public health authorities in South Korea are investigating possible links between the death of a teenager and a flu vaccine that experienced heat fluctuations. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said in Monday’s press briefing that a 17-year-old boy without preexisting medical conditions died at his Incheon home on Oct. 16, two days after getting a flu shot. The vaccine he received was a product distributed by Shinsung pharmaceutical company, which was earlier accused of han
Social AffairsOct. 20, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] S. Korea to lift export ban on mask filters
South Korea said Tuesday it will lift the export ban on nonwoven fabrics this week that are used to produce protective masks as the domestic supply of the materials and masks stabilized. Under the decision, the country will lift the regulation that bans firms from exporting more than 15 percent of their production of nonwoven fabrics starting Friday, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Earlier this year, the country ran out of melt-blown nonwoven fabric filters amid soarin
EconomyOct. 20, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] COVID-19 health spending to reach W320b this year: NHIS
The amount of money expected to be spent on coronavirus patients -- from the pre-diagnosis stage through recovery -- is expected to total close to 320 billion won ($280 million), the National Health Insurance Service said Sunday. About one-third of the cost would be taken up at the pre-diagnosis stage, including coronavirus tests, it added. The total number of coronavirus patients here is projected to reach 33,995 by the end of this year, 8,796 more than Sunday’s tally of 25,199, t
Social AffairsOct. 18, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] NK says Danish documentary on Pyongyang dodging sanctions ‘fabricated:’ report
North Korea said a recent Danish documentary claims to show Pyongyang bypassing international sanctions on arms trading is “fabricated” and called Denmark to find the infiltrator, according to media reports on Friday. The North Korean Embassy in Stockholm said the documentary “is from the beginning to the end a fabricated film which aimed to cast a slur on the image of the DPRK,” Reuters reported, citing the embassy’s letter sent to Danish newspaper Ekstra Bl
North KoreaOct. 16, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Church suspends pastor for blessing sexual minorities
The Korea Methodist Church slapped Rev. Lee Dong-hwan with a two-year suspension from work for giving a blessing to participants in a queer festival in August last year. The judicial committee of the Korea Methodist Church’s Gyeonggi Province branch made the decision Thursday, immediately suspending Lee from his position as pastor at a Methodist church in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. He is also barred from making sermons, giving blessings and holding prayers on behalf of the Methodist Church
Social AffairsOct. 15, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Human rights groups call for UN resolution to include N. Korea's killing of S. Korean citizen
More than 30 human rights groups from seven countries urged the United Nations to include North Korea's recent killing of a South Korean official adrift in its waters in its annual human rights resolution on the communist state. The groups said they made the request in a joint public letter to the UN after learning of the "shocking news" that North Korea killed the South Korean official and burned his body last month "in accordance with Pyongyang's shoot-to-kill order to prevent
North KoreaOct. 15, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] N. Korea appears to have 'no appetite' for provocation until after US election: Seoul official
North Korea seems to have no appetite for provocation until after the US presidential election in November, a foreign ministry official said Wednesday, citing "no explicit agitation" toward Washington during Pyongyang's recent military parade. Park Jang-ho, deputy director-general at the foreign ministry's North Korean nuclear affairs bureau, made the remarks during a webinar hosted jointly by the Sejong Institute and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "It seems to us t
North KoreaOct. 14, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Rhee Keun claims he was wrongfully convicted of sexual assault
Rhee Keun, also known as Ken Rhee, who recently gained huge popularity playing a South Korean Navy SEAL on YouTube, has suddenly found himself fighting to safeguard his reputation and lucrative commercial deals after a groping conviction on his record was revealed to the public. “I apologize for posting another message dealing with such unfortunate matters,” said Rhee on his YouTube channel Tuesday. He admitted that he had been convicted of sexual assault in 2019, but sai
Social AffairsOct. 13, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Illegal military service exemptions rise steadily every year
The number of illegal exemptions from mandatory military service detected by local authorities has surged nearly 60 percent over the past five years, a ruling party lawmaker said Tuesday, calling for tougher punishments for draft dodgers. Rep. Ahn Gyu-back of the Democratic Party, citing the Military Manpower Administration's data, said the number of people booked by police on charges of illegally receiving an exemption from military duty increased 59.6 percent from 47 in 2015 to 75 in 2019. T
DefenseOct. 13, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] Chinese fans upset by BTS’ Korean War remark: report
Hit K-pop act BTS has come under fire in China for a remark about the Korean War, according to a Chinese news outlet. BTS recently received the General James A. Van Fleet Award from the Korea Society, a US-based nonprofit organization. The award, named after a US commander who fought in the Korean War (1950-1953), is given to South Korean and US nationals who have strengthened the ties between the two nations. In a video clip released by the organization on Wednesday, BTS member RM made an
PerformanceOct. 12, 2020
-
[Newsmaker] People Power Party slams Moon's 'submissive' attitude towards NK
The main opposition party on Monday accused North Korea of violating its military agreement with South Korea by developing a new intercontinental ballistic missile and submarine-launched ballistic missiles which it unveiled in a military parade on Saturday. “This is a clear violation of the military agreement. We can only see (the North’s threat) as increased, not diminished,” Kim Chong-in, interim leader of the People’s Power Party, said during an emergency meeting at t
PoliticsOct. 12, 2020