South Korea

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S. Korea Says There Was Something Fishy About N. Korea Launch

Officials suspect Pyongyang fired older model of ICBM for propaganda win

(Newser) - The intercontinental ballistic missile North Korea launched last week flew higher and farther than any of its predecessors, officials say—but not all was as it seemed, according to South Korea's defense ministry. Ministry officials told lawmakers that evidence strongly suggests North Korea fired an older Hwasong-15 missile, which...

Incoming S. Korean Leader Wants to Upend Tradition

Yoon Suk-yeol's plans to move presidential residence from Blue House faces resistance

(Newser) - South Korea's outgoing liberal government expressed its opposition Monday to a plan by its rival and conservative President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol to relocate the presidential office by his inauguration in May, a development that could put Yoon's ambitious project in doubt and trigger a domestic political firestorm. On Sunday,...

New S. Korea Leader Plans to Shake Up Foreign Relations

Conservative Yoon Suk-yeol plans to take harder line on N. Korea

(Newser) - Conservative candidate Yoon Seok-yeol is South Korea's president-elect after an election that had some parallels to the US presidential election in 2016: A populist candidate new to politics narrowly defeated a liberal ruling party candidate—and both candidates were widely unpopular during a bitter campaign. With more than 99%...

Stranger Walks Up to Diplomat in NYC, Punches Him

Diplomat was punched in the face with no provocation, police say

(Newser) - A South Korean diplomat was attacked with no provocation Wednesday in New York City, police say. NYPD officers responded around 8:10pm to reports of an assault in Midtown Manhattan and found the injured 53-year-old. He'd been punched in the face for no reason by a stranger, police say....

He's Running for President in S. Korea. Bald People Love Him

Lee Jae-myung is pushing government to pay for hair loss treatments

(Newser) - South Korean presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung isn't bald. But he is enjoying the support of many bald voters over his push for government payments for hair loss treatments. Since his proposal was disclosed earlier this week, hair loss has emerged as a hot-button topic ahead of March's presidential...

Man Who Crossed DMZ Into North Korea Believed to Be Gymnast

He is believed to have first defected from North to South last year

(Newser) - Update: The person who crossed the DMZ to enter North Korea over the weekend is a male gymnast, Seoul says. He is believed to have defected from North to South Korea last year, and on Saturday made his way back, the BBC reports. Why he did so is not clear,...

In This City, Unlikely Suspects Have Started Dozens of Fires

Cats are being blamed for 100-plus blazes in Seoul homes over the past 3 years

(Newser) - It's not unusual to hear about a young child starting a house fire after playing with matches or a lighter. In South Korea, however, one city is plagued by a different type of accidental arsonist. Seoul Metropolitan Fire & Disaster Headquarters reports that for the past three years—from...

K-Pop Superstars Test Positive For COVID

BTS heartthrobs RM, Jin, and Suga were all vaccinated

(Newser) - Three members of the K-pop superstar group BTS have been infected with the coronavirus after returning from abroad, their management agency said. RM and Jin were diagnosed with COVID-19 on Saturday evening, the Big Hit Music agency said in a statement, per the AP . It earlier said another member, Suga,...

South Korea President Pardons Jailed Predecessor

Park Guen-hye was 5 years into 20-year sentence

(Newser) - South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Friday he will pardon his chief conservative rival and predecessor, Park Geun-hye, who is serving a lengthy prison term for bribery and other crimes. Moon’s liberal government said the pardon is meant to promote national unity in the face of difficulties brought by...

Report: NK Publicly Executes Those Who View Outside Media

Human rights group describes 7 executions related to South Korean entertainment

(Newser) - North Korea is reportedly executing people found to possess videos from its enemy to the south, including episodes of Squid Game. A year-old law states those who possess, watch, or distribute media from capitalist countries, including South Korea and the US, can be put to death, reports Radio Free Asia...

S. Korea Dairy Company Sorry for Turning Women Into Cows

The advertisement for Seoul Milk wasn't well received

(Newser) - "We are taking this matter seriously, and we will pay more attention and review to prevent similar problems in the future." It's a fairly standard corporate apology. What prompted South Korea's largest dairy company to issue it is a little less typical: an advertisement that critics...

Sure Sign of Friction: 2 No-Shows at Press Conference

US official has to go solo after Japanese and South Korean counterparts bail

(Newser) - US State Department official Wendy Sherman conducted a press conference Wednesday about tensions in Asia, but it was most notable for who wasn't there. Her counterparts from Japan and South Korea failed to show up as scheduled because they're feuding over regional islands, reports Reuters . The three diplomats...

S. Korea Launches First Domestically Made Rocket

Nuri brings country into space race

(Newser) - South Korea test-launched its first domestically produced space rocket on Thursday in what officials describe as an important step in the country's pursuit of a satellite launch program. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the three-stage Nuri rocket succeeded in delivering a dummy payload—a 1.5-ton block of...

Samsung Chief: I Used Drug That Killed Michael Jackson

Lee Jae-yong admits in court he partook in propofol many times over 5-year period, says he's 'regretful'

(Newser) - More troubles have emerged for Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong, who admitted in court this week he's used a controlled substance illegally—and quite a bit of it. Reuters reports that in Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday, Lee copped to partaking in the sedative propofol more than three dozen...

Netflix Is Removing Real Phone Number From Squid Game

South Korean woman has had thousands of calls

(Newser) - In smash Netflix hit Squid Game, people in financial trouble are given a mysterious card with a phone number, and callers end up playing life-and-death games for money. This has caused some major issues for the South Korean woman whose phone number appears on the card, reports Reuters . Kim Gil-young,...

Oxford English Dictionary Adds 26 Korean Words

They include a term for the world's growing interest in South Korean culture

(Newser) - The Korean wave has swept over the Oxford English Dictionary, which included more than two dozen new entries for words of Korean origin in its latest edition. The dictionary, which describes itself as the "definitive record of the English language," says the growing global popularity of Korean culture...

Netflix's New Hit Is a 'Haunting Microcosm of Real Life'

'Squid Game' has enthralled the internet, may soon overtake 'Bridgerton' as the platform's biggest hit

(Newser) - There's a new hit series in town, thanks to Netflix and the public's penchant for dystopian action. NBC News reports that Squid Game—a nine-episode thriller out of South Korea that debuted on the streaming platform on Sept. 17—is now "the internet's favorite show,"...

'Long Time No Talk': South Korean Official to North Korean Official

Hotlines between two countries restored

(Newser) - Update: North Korea on Monday restored its hotlines with South Korea, and communication resumed on them for the first time in almost two months. "Long time no talk. We’re very pleased because the communication channels have been restored like this. We hope that South-North relations will develop into...

During Pandemic, This Nation's Economy Takes Top Billing

Switzerland is No. 1 on WIPO's Global Innovation Index for 132 economies around the world

(Newser) - To get through something like a pandemic, countries have had to innovate—especially when it comes to keeping their economies humming. And there are "reasons to be optimistic" on that front, according to one of the editors of the World Intellectual Property Organization's annual Global Innovation Index , which...

South Korea May Side With Dogs Over Tradition

President suggests it's time to prohibit the consumption of dog meat

(Newser) - South Korea's president is a dog guy, and he wants the country to follow suit. Moon Jae-in said Monday the government should consider banning the consumption of dog meat, reports Bloomberg . "Hasn't the time come?" Moon asked during a weekly briefing with Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, per...

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