Police on Tuesday sought an arrest warrant for the motorcycle owner who is suspected of having triggered a deadly fire in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, earlier this month. Four were killed and 126 injured in a blaze that engulfed three residential buildings on Jan. 10. The city police confirmed from surveillance camera footage that the fire had started from a spark from a motorcycle in a ground-floor parking lot. The motorbike owner, identified by his surname Kim, was booked on charges of accide

Social Affairs Jan. 20, 2015

President Park Geun-hye’s approval rating hit a record low this week amid a spiraling influence-peddling scandal involving her former and incumbent aides, and escalating tension between her office and the ruling party.According to local pollster Gallup Korea, Park’s approval rating plunged to 35 percent, the lowest level since she entered office in early 2013. The poll also showed that 50 percent of respondents in their 50s disapproved of her performance, surpassing the percentage of respondents

Social Affairs Jan. 16, 2015

The mother of a victim of the Ansan hostage case had requested urgent help from the police days before her daughters were attacked by their stepfather, the authorities said Friday, with the police being criticized for missing signs of the incident. Kim Sang-hun, 47, was arrested Tuesday for killing his wife’s ex-husband and his stepdaughter while holding the four hostage in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province. Kim demanded that his wife come to see him during the five-hour standoff. The suspect committed t

Social Affairs Jan. 16, 2015

The arrested hostage-taker in Monday’s siege in Ansan, south of Seoul, stabbed a knife into the neck of his stepdaughter, one of the four hostages, and then strangled her to death before the five-hour standoff with police began, investigators said Wednesday.The 47-year-old man, identified only by his surname Kim, was nabbed Tuesday after killing his wife’s ex-husband and the 16-year-old stepdaughter while taking the four hostages. The other two hostages were rescued unharmed. The authorities sai

Social Affairs Jan. 14, 2015

South Korea is seeking to operate a special express train this year that would pass major cities in Eurasia nations as part of efforts to advance President Park Geun-hye’s vision for a united Eurasia, officials said Tuesday.In October 2013, Park unveiled her Eurasia initiative that calls for, among other things, infrastructure development and freer trade among Eurasian nations by linking their railways. South Korea hopes to eventually link its rail network to Russia’s Trans-Siberian Railway via

Social Affairs Jan. 13, 2015

The South Korean Navy will set up a submarine command next month as part of efforts to boost the country‘s underwater capabilities, a naval officer said Sunday.“The submarine command will be established on Feb. 1 in the southern port city of Jinhae after extending the current 9th submarine flotilla,” the naval officer said, requesting anonymity.The new command will be in charge of the naval underwater capabilities under the leadership of a two-star general, he added.“It will operate nine 1,200-t

Defense Jan. 11, 2015

Korean quarantine authorities vowed Thursday to beef up their preventive measures against foot-and-mouth disease amid concerns over the government’s quarantine management. In an emergency meeting of the Agriculture Ministry and the ruling Saenuri Party, the ministry said it would raise the vaccination rate from 70 percent to 100 percent for all livestock and toughen the monitoring system in municipalities. The government also suggested that it would create an early alert system as part of the ef

Social Affairs Jan. 8, 2015

Foot-and-mouth disease was confirmed to have spread to a cow Tuesday, raising concerns that the disease would infect other cloven-hoofed animals besides pigs. One cow at a farm in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, had tested positive for the viral disease in the final examination, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said. The cow was found Monday to be drooling ― a common symptom of the disease. This is the first confirmed case of a cow with foot-and-mouth disease since 2012. Only pigs

Social Affairs Jan. 6, 2015

A runaway father accused of allegedly killing his family was captured Tuesday in the central part of the country, police confirmed. The 48-year-old man surnamed Kang was nabbed in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province, some 180 kilometers south of Seoul. Kang fled from the capital early in the morning after he reported to the police that he had strangled his wife and two daughters and would kill himself. After the call was received, the police confirmed that three women ― a 43-year-old surnamed L

Social Affairs Jan. 6, 2015