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Stripped of immunity, Yoon Suk Yeol now faces 7 criminal offenses
All of South Korea’s law enforcement agencies are now investigating former President Yoon Suk Yeol, with seven criminal cases underway following the loss of his presidential immunity after his April 4 ouster. While controversies surrounding Yoon and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, drew attention during his presidency, investigations had stalled due to Article 84 of the Constitution, which shields sitting presidents from prosecution except for insurrection or treason. Yoon also vetoed multiple bills call
May 2, 2025 -
Daegu fire calls for stronger urban fire prevention
Fire prevention experts are urging the government to establish specific measures for blazes near densely populated areas, following a recent wildfire in Daegu that took four days to fully extinguish. At around 2 p.m. on Monday, a large-scale fire broke out at Hamjisan, a mountain near central Daegu. Due to dry weather conditions and strong winds, the fire grew to burn up to 260 hectares in about 23 hours, until the main blaze was declared to have been extinguished Tuesday. However, as some remai
May 2, 2025 -
Supreme Court’s verdict sours Lee Jae-myung’s presidential bid
The Supreme Court of Korea overturned the lower court’s decision to acquit former Democratic Party of Korea leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung on two charges of election law violations, sending the case back to the Seoul High Court. The top court’s 10-2 ruling Thursday reversed the Seoul High Court's verdict from late March, which found the evidence presented against Lee regarding false statements "did not prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt." Chief Justice Jo Hee-de said in the televised proceed
May 1, 2025 -
Credit card spending by foreign residents in Korea jumps 65% in 4 years, hitting W56tr
Foreign nationals living in South Korea are a growing force in the country’s consumer economy, spending 56.3 trillion won ($39.3 billion) on locally issued credit cards in 2023, according to a December 2024 report from the Migration Research and Training Center based on Shinhan Card data. That’s a 65 percent increase from 34.1 trillion won in 2019. The figure only includes transactions made by foreign nationals living in Korea who hold credit cards issued by Shinhan, one of South Korea’s largest
May 1, 2025 -
Deadline passes for medical students to return to class
A mass repeat of academic years for South Korean medical students has become a reality after the deadline for returning to classes passed at midnight Wednesday, with only a small number of last-minute returns. As a result, a rare “tripling” scenario — where three cohorts of first-year pre-medical students take the same classes simultaneously — now appears inevitable. All 40 medical schools across the country had finalized their lists of students who failed to return to class as of midnight, acco
May 1, 2025 -
Ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol indicted for abuse of power
The prosecution investigating former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 declaration of martial law on Thursday indicted Yoon on charges of abuse of power. Yoon has been accused of obstruction of the exercise of rights through the abuse of power, a violation of Article 123 of the Criminal Act, when he declared martial law in December, according to the prosecution’s Special Investigation Team led by Park Se-hyun, chief prosecutor at the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office. The prosecutor’s Special Invest
May 1, 2025 -
Young diabetics in Korea double in 10 years: study
The number of Koreans in their 20s and 30s diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes has more than doubled in a decade, with approximately 370,000 people in this age group now living with the disease, a recent study shows. According to research published in the Diabetes and Metabolism Journal of the Korean Diabetes Association, 2.02 percent of Koreans aged 19-39 had Type 2 diabetes in 2020, up from 1.02 percent in 2010. The increase of diabetes cases among young adults is especially noticeable among those
May 1, 2025 -
Seoul’s monthly transit pass to cover more of Seongnam
Seoul’s all-inclusive monthly transit pass, dubbed the “Climate Card,” will be available for use at subway stations on the Suin-Bundang Line and the Gyeonggang Line in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, starting Saturday, according to the municipal government on Thursday. The Climate Card is a rechargeable monthly transit pass that gives commuters access to public transport systems within the administrative boundaries of Seoul as well as select neighboring cities on the city's outskirts. From Saturday
May 1, 2025 -
As unused homes increase in rural South Korea, govt. mobilizes nationwide response
South Korea on Thursday announced a pangovernment plan to tackle the growing problem of unused houses, as rural areas face the looming threat of extinction amid population decline. While there are an estimated 134,000 so-called empty houses nationwide, making up 7.9 percent of all residential buildings, the problem is particularly acute outside metropolitan areas. As of 2023, 42.7 percent of these empty houses, or 57,223 homes, were concentrated in 89 regions experiencing population decline. The
May 1, 2025 -
Main blaze in wildfire in Daegu contained
The main blaze in a wildfire that reignited on a mountain in the southeastern city of Daegu has been contained, forest service authorities said Thursday. About 40 helicopters and 900 personnel were deployed to put out the wildfire that reignited on Mount Hamji in Daegu, with firefighters trying to extinguish smoldering fires, according to officials at the Korea Forest Service. The fire, which began Monday afternoon, was extinguished nearly 23 hours later on Tuesday afternoon after scorching 260
May 1, 2025 -
Emergency response order issued again as wildfire reignites in Daegu
A wildfire reignited on a mountain in the southeastern city of Daegu on Wednesday, prompting authorities to issue evacuation alerts to nearby residents and a national mobilization order. The fire, which began Monday afternoon on Mount Hamji in northern Daegu, about 230 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was extinguished nearly 23 hours later on Tuesday afternoon after scorching 260 hectares of land and forcing more than 2,000 people to evacuate. On Tuesday evening, however, the fire reignited on par
April 30, 2025 -
Fast-tracked Lee Jae-myung verdict stirs talk of political timing
As the Supreme Court of Korea decided to deliver its verdict on Lee Jae-myung’s election law violation case on Thursday, just nine days after it first reviewed the case on April 22, speculation grows over the reason behind the top court’s earlier-than-expected ruling date. While many election law violation cases that are appealed to the Supreme Court take more than three months to process, Lee’s case has garnered both public and legal analysts’ attention because the court conducted two hearings
April 30, 2025 -
Intermittent heavy rain to fall nationwide from Labor Day
Following a few days of sunny, warm weather, the Korea Meteorological Administration announced during its press briefing Wednesday that South Korea will see heavy rain nationwide on Labor Day morning. According to the KMA, as warm air from the south and cold air from the north collide above the Korean Peninsula, heavy rain will fall nationwide from Thursday. The Greater Seoul region of Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, as well as the inland parts of Gangwon Province, the North and South Chun
April 30, 2025 -
Over 40% of child sex exploitation victims targeted via chat apps: report
Four out of 10 child and teenage victims of sex exploitation in South Korea last year were targeted through online chat applications, according to a new government report set to be released Thursday. The 2024 annual report by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the Korea Women’s Human Rights Institute found that the most common method of exploitation was through so-called “compensated dating,” often initiated on anonymous online platforms. The findings are based on support data collec
April 30, 2025 -
2 suspects in massive Gyeongsang wildfires to be handed over to prosecution early May
Two men suspected of starting deadly wildfires that spread across southeastern South Korea and claimed 33 lives in late March could be referred to prosecutors in early May at the earliest, North Gyeongsang Province police said Wednesday. The suspects are currently not in physical detention, as a local court rejected the police’s request for arrest warrants last week. The court stated that investigators had already acquired enough evidence to prove the suspects’ involvement, and that the suspects
April 30, 2025