Rival parties at odds over election recount

South Korea's rival parties continued wrangling over the June 3 local elections, clashing over an election recount during a special committee meeting at the National Assembly on Wednesday. Lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea demanded a recount for the 2.47 million votes cast by residents of Songpa-gu before the end of July as planned, while lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party questioned the validity of the plan. Democratic Party lawmaker Rep. Youn Kun-young clai

2026-07-22 18:02:43:00

KFA hearing to convene on July 30 as parliamentary deadlock wanes

The National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee will convene a hearing concerning the Korea Football Association on July 30, summoning key individuals who oversaw the association in the run-up to the 2026 World Cup. The hearing is to revolve around the Korea Football Association's lack of transparency in its appointment of Hong Myung-bo as head coach of the men's national soccer team, which was eliminated from the group stage competition at the World Cup. Plans to summon 15 witnes

2026-07-21 18:30:52:00

Ruling party pushes through bill to extend probe into Yoon couple

The National Assembly on Tuesday passed a contentious bill to extend a special counsel investigation into former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, former first lady Kim Keon Hee, over the 2024 martial law and several corruption scandals. The bill was granted Cabinet approval later Tuesday. The special counsel investigation led by Kwon Chang-young and set to end Friday will now continue through to late August after the proposed revision passed with a 173-0 vote. The Democratic Party of Korea

2026-07-21 17:21:04:00

Authorities mull tighter curbs on 'predatory' leveraged buyouts as Homeplus crisis bites

The government said Tuesday it was mulling a tighter curb on leveraged buyout firms, in response to liberal lawmakers' claims that a predatory act by buyout firm MBK Partners is to blame for the liquidation crisis of hypermarket chain Homeplus. Kwon Dae-young, vice chair of the Financial Services Commission, said the top financial regulator was "discussing stricter oversight" of the private equity firm's leveraged buyout activities, in response to Democratic Party Rep. Kim Hyun-jung's inquiry at

2026-07-21 15:56:08:00

PPP filibusters bill to extend probe into Yoon couple

The main opposition People Power Party launched a filibuster Monday afternoon to impede a proposed bill from passing. The proposed revision would extend the special counsel investigation into ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his 2024 imposition of martial law, as well as broader corruption allegations against Yoon and his wife. This came as the National Assembly tabled the revision to the special counsel bill backed by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea. Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun, a five-te

2026-07-20 15:30:36:00

More downpour expected nationwide from Saturday night

Yet another round of heavy downpour is expected nationwide again at night, as South Koreans enjoyed a short respite Saturday afternoon following the torrential rain overnight. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration as of Saturday afternoon, the southern part of Gyeonggi Province, southern Gangwon Province, Chungcheong Provinces, North Jeolla Province and North Gyeongsang Province will be under the influence of rainstorm starting Saturday evening, with rainfall of up to 50 millimete

2026-07-18 16:49:15:00

Macron makes appearance at BTS tour in France

French President Emmanuel Macron made an appearance at the Stade de France Friday local time to attend a BTS concert there. Macron was accompanied by his wife Brigitte Macron on the first day of the seven-member K-pop sensation's France gig as part of its Arirang world tour. The French presidential couple's appearance soon went viral on social media. On Saturday Seoul time, Macron posted a 17-second clip of BTS performing one of its record-smashing hits "Dynamite" on his Instagram account. The p

2026-07-18 15:04:59:00

Lee touts increase in agricultural subsidies as key to national survival

President Lee Jae Myung called for increased agricultural subsidies, saying it would be crucial for the country's food security and national survival. In his X post Friday night, Lee said South Korea should move to safeguard the farming industry and prepare for an emergency in terms of food supply and foreign food products' eased access to the South Korean agricultural market. He said increasing the government's direct payment to farmers would be crucial to ensuring farmers' security against thi

2026-07-18 11:44:15:00

Torrential rainstorm batters Greater Seoul; landslide alert issued

Torrential rain battered South Korea's capital and its suburban regions, as well as Gangwon Province and Chungcheong Provinces overnight. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration at 8 a.m. Saturday, Seoul saw 117.9 millimeters of downpour as the rain started Friday night, and the port city of Incheon just west of Seoul also recorded 109.7 mm of rain throughout Saturday morning. Over 150 mm of rain was dumped in cities in northern Gyeonggi Province, such as Paju and Dongducheon. Rains

2026-07-18 08:40:15:00

Lee awards demonstrators who protested Yoon's martial law on Constitution Day

President Lee Jae Myung on Friday awarded demonstrators who took to the streets to protest former President Yoon Suk Yeol's imposition of martial law in December 2024 for their dedication to upholding the spirit of democracy. Four individuals were awarded at the event held on South Korea's Constitution Day at Cheong Wa Dae, according to Cheong Wa Dae's deputy spokesperson Ahn Gwi-ryeong. Awardees included a woman attributed with starting the trend of martial law protesters covering up with silve

2026-07-17 17:33:53:00