A South Korean couple has been shot to death in the Philippines, diplomatic sources said Friday, fanning concerns over rising crimes targeting South Korean nationals in the Southeast Asian country.
  

A South Korean man in his 50s was shot to death by an unidentified armed assailant either late Thursday or in the wee hours of Friday in his house in the Calabarzon region, south of Manila, the sources said. His wife in her 40s is known to have been killed outside the home while running away.
  

The incident raised the number of South Koreans killed in the Philippines to 10 this year.
  

Violent crimes, such as murder and robbery, aimed at Korean nationals have been on the rise in the Philippines where regulations on gun control are lax.
  

Ten South Koreans were killed there last year, while 13 Korean nationals were murdered there in 2013, according to South Korea's Foreign Ministry.
  

In August, a South Korean couple in their 60s was found dead with gun-inflicted wounds at their home south of Manila. Last month, a 61-year-old South Korean national was shot to death in the city of Angeles.
  

Last month, the Foreign Ministry requested that the foreign ministry and the state policy agency in the Philippines raise their guard in a bid to ensure the safety of South Koreans living there and Korean travelers. (Yonhap)