INCHEON (Yonhap News) -- Efforts are under way to clean up diesel fuel that leaked into the Yellow Sea early Wednesday from a fuel storage facility of a front-line Marine base, military officials said, noting no major damage was reported from oil spill. The 6th Marine Brigade based on the northern island of Baengyeong said a sergeant reported the diesel spill at around 7:20 a.m, estimating some ...

Justice Ministry officials and prosecutors here have sparked protests from police officers by submitting a draft of a presidential decree limiting the investigational rights of police to the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday. The draft submitted by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office and the Ministry of Justice limits the investigative rights of the National Police Agency to questioning and informat...

SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Yonhap) -- More than seven out of 10 South Koreans said they live in "an unfair society," a survey showed Wednesday, despite the government's ongoing campaign highlighting the issue. In the telephone survey of 1,000 citizens older than 19 nationwide, 72.6 percent said Korean society is either "not very" or "far from" fair. Those who see the society impartial reached 26.7 percent,...

Foreigners in Seoul regard diverse and delicious foods as the capital’s greatest charm, while locals are most attracted to the Han River, a survey by the Seoul city government showed Wednesday. The city government polled 2,907 local residents and 920 foreigners about its charms in August. In the survey, foreign visitors favored the variety of food, followed by convenient public transportation an...

Man accused of infamous 1997 murder faces possible extradition to Korea The now sole suspect of an infamous 1997 murder in Seoul was arrested in California and is standing trial for possible extradition, Korean prosecutors said Monday. “We are aware that Arthur Patterson, who is a suspect of the homicide, was arrested and is currently under trial at a California district court,” said an unnamed...

Asbestos has been found in the playgrounds of eight schools and its level is confirmed to have exceeded the permissible 0.1 percent, the Education Ministry said Tuesday. The ministry’s investigation and result-came after an environmental group claimed they had found high levels of the cancer-causing agent in playgrounds of the eight schools. The schools are Yangmyung Elementary School in Seoul,...

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a bill that would punish corrupt employees at state-run firms the same as government officials, which the government said is a measure aimed at increasing transparency in the management of local public firms. The revised law on provincial public firms is subject to approval from the parliament. All employees of state-run companies, if the bill is endorsed, can fa...

CHUNCHEON, South Korea, Oct. 10 (Yonhap) -- A local court here on Monday sentenced a 45-year-old South Korean man to 20 years in prison for killing his Cambodian wife last year to collect US$1 million from insurance policies. The defendant, identified only by his surname Kang, was indicted in March last year on charges of setting his home ablaze after drugging his 23-year-old Cambodian wife with...

More than 200 people were arrested in connection with sex trafficking over a five week period, police officials said Monday. According to the National Police Agency, 225 people were arrested in Korea for operating in the international sex trade, from Aug. 22 to Sept. 30. Of those arrested 110 were women. They were led to believe that they could make large sums of money through prostitution in a...

Students of a late mechanical engineering professor of Sungkyunkwan University have raised a scholarship fund in his honor, the school said Monday. Named after professor Kim Young-jin, Y.J. Kim Century Club has been set up by 100 of his students, colleagues and mother. Kim died of liver cancer on Sept. 29. Kim’s fifth student, professor Choi Jae-boong of mechanical engineering department, said ...

A former vice culture minister, during an overnight questioning, denied allegations that he received a huge amount of money from a local businessman in return for influence peddling, prosecution sources said Monday. Shin Jae-min, the ex-vice minister and close presidential confidant, returned home early Monday after undergoing 17 hours of intensive questioning over allegations that he took more ...

Seoul city government is holding a Korean food competition through YouTube until Oct. 31, with a chance to win a four-day trip to Seoul. Foreigners residing outside of the country are eligible to apply for the contest. Participants are required to create a video clip of a Korean dish combined with their local cuisine and upload it on YouTube at www.youtube.com/visitseoul. Five winners will be s...