The Seoul Metropolitan Government said the mayor did not come to work Thursday due to health reasons. In a text message to reporters in the morning, the city government said all events and meetings that Park had been set to attend Thursday were called off for “unavoidable reasons.” On Wednesday, Park made a public appearance while holding a press conference on the city’s “Green New Deal” that i...

Search efforts continued to locate Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon late Thursday night, several hours after he was reported missing. Police and fire authorities launched the search after Park’s daughter filed a police report at 5:17 p.m. that his whereabouts were unaccounted for. “He had left home four to five hours ago after leaving words like a will, with his phone currently off," the daughter told...

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol accepted Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae’s directive Thursday to back down from an investigation in a case involving a senior prosecutor believed to be close to him. With the decision, tensions between Choo and Yoon appear to have eased over who should oversee the ongoing inquiry into allegations that prosecutor Han Dong-hoon colluded with a former Channel A journal...

Seoul City plans to invest 2.6 trillion won ($2.17 billion) for its version of the “Green New Deal” that intends to cut carbon dioxide emissions while creating jobs. “The Seoul version of the Green New Deal is a core strategy for the post-coronavirus era that will help us to overcome climate crisis and economic crisis simultaneously,” Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said during a press conference held...

Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae issued an ultimatum to Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol to respond by Thursday morning to her directive to forgo his authority to supervise an investigation in the case involving a senior prosecutor known to be loyal to him. “A week has passed. I will wait one more day until tomorrow 10 a.m.,” Choo said in a statement released by the Ministry of Justice on Wednesday....

Former Prime Minister Rep. Lee Nak-yon announced Tuesday his bid to become chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea. With Lee in, the contest for leadership of the liberal camp is shaping up to be a two-horse race -- between him and Kim Bu-gyeom, both with ambitions of being South Korea’s president. “I have come to the conclusion that I have to mobilize all-available capabilities to tak...

A wave of abuse allegations swept a semi-pro triathlete club owned by Gyeongju City after the suicide of a player who claimed to have suffered years of verbal and physical abuse from her coach, team physician and senior teammates. More triathletes have come forward as victims and in support of the deceased teammate, but the alleged abusers denied any wrongdoing. Some 15 former and current triat...

Jung Soon-kyeong’s day starts with changing the diaper of her 18-year-old daughter Cho Hye-won. She then spoon-feeds, washes and runs every errand for her as her sole, round-the-clock caregiver. Brain lesions mean Cho has severe paralysis. And now, Jung feels both she and her daughter are trapped in their home, cut off from the world, since the coronavirus outbreak. “Hye-won became more anxious...

Prospects are growing for a conservative coalition, as two opposition parties seek ways to challenge the mammoth ruling Democratic Party of Korea, which holds the biggest majority ever claimed by a single party in the history of the National Assembly. Cooperative moves gained traction since the right-wing United Future Party, the largest opposition party with 103 lawmakers, and center-right Peop...

Concerns are mounting in Gwangju that it could emerge as a new hotbed for the spread of the new coronavirus, as sporadic infections continue to grow in the southern city with a population of 1.5 million. Of 54 new daily cases reported in South Korea on Thursday, Gwangju registered 22 new cases with a recent surge in COVID-19 infections related to small gatherings in churches and a Buddhist templ...

Former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Wednesday he would announce his bid for the chairmanship of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea next week, which could help the key potential presidential candidate consolidate his position and stamp his authority on the liberal faction. Lee said he would make an announcement on his future course of action on Tuesday, about eight weeks before the Democrati...

The country’s third and largest-ever extra budget plan cleared a minor hurdle Tuesday as the ruling Democratic Party forges ahead with the review process despite the absence of the main opposition party following fierce strife between the rival political groups. Sixteen parliamentary standing committees completed the budget review sessions by adding 3.13 trillion won ($2.61 billion) to the gover...

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea has strengthened its grip on the National Assembly, already heavily tilted to the left, by taking the chair posts of nearly all standing committees, after talks with the main opposition party on sharing them fell apart. In a plenary session held on Monday, 181 lawmakers, including 176 from the Democratic Party, completed casting votes for the mainstream liber...

Prosecutors’ yearslong intensive probe into Samsung Group took a fresh twist after a panel of outside experts advised them not to indict the group’s de facto leader Lee Jae-yong and drop the investigation on alleged corporate fraud surrounding the 2015 merger between two key affiliates. In a deliberation session held Friday, the 14-member committee, which was set up to check the prosecution’s po...

South Korea’s health authorities said Thursday they will provide epidemiological information collected from thousands of local COVID-19 patients to medical professionals, in a bid to come up with effective measures to counter a possible resurgence of the virus. The Central Disaster Management Headquarters and National Medical Center will disclose clinical data on 5,500 people who have been relea...