The Korea Herald

US kidnap victim recounts details of ordeal

World NewsJul 11, 2011

LOS ANGELES, July 10, 2011 (AFP) - A California woman kidnapped as a schoolgirl and repeatedly raped over 18 years in captivity described graphic details of her ordeal, in a first ever TV interview aired Sunday.Jaycee Dugard, who was 11 when she was seized and kept in a back yard compound by Phillip and Nancy Garrido in 1991, described how she gave birth to two daughters of her own -- and how that
Man burns down own home to spite noisy neighbor

Jul 11, 2011

A man who set fire to his own home to retaliate against his noisy neighbor was sentenced to two years by Changwon District Court.The 46-year-old arsonist, who lives in an apartment, said the neighbor upstairs was too noisy and he could not stand it. He said in the hearing that despite frequent remonstrations, the situation did not change.On the day of the accident, his neighbor ignored his complai
Russia: Dozens of kids among 101 ferry missing

World NewsJul 11, 2011

MOSCOW (AP) _ A half-century-old tourist boat with 188 people on board listed and sank quickly in one of the world's largest reservoirs amid wind and rain Sunday, authorities and survivors said, and dozens of children were believed to be among the 101 people missing. Two bodies were recovered.About 30 children gathered in a cockpit in the double-decker Bulgaria moments before it sank into the rese
63 dead, 200 hurt as trains derail in India

World NewsJul 11, 2011

LUCKNOW, India, July 11, 2011 (AFP) - Rescue teams pulled bodies and survivors Monday from the wreckage of two Indian passenger trains that derailed in separate incidents over the weekend, leaving 63 dead and 200 injured.Nearly a dozen carriages of a packed express jumped the rails in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, while a second derailed as a result of a suspected bomb attack in
Obama calls more talks to break debt impasse

World NewsJul 11, 2011

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- U.S. President Barack Obama convened a second consecutive day of crisis White House talks Monday, but a polarized Washington appeared far from a deal to stave off a catastrophic debt default.Obama met Sunday evening with congressional leaders, including Republican House Speaker John Boehner, but 75 minutes of talks failed to unblock an impasse that reaches right to the heart of
David Beckham, wife Victoria welcome a baby girl

SoccerJul 11, 2011

LONDON (AP) _ David Beckham's spokesman said that the soccer star's wife Victoria has given birth to a healthy baby girl on Sunday.Simon Oliveira said that the celebrity couple are ``delighted to announce the birth of their daughter.''``Happy and healthy she arrived at 7.55 am this morning at Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles and weighed 7lbs 10oz,'' Oliveira posted on Twitter, adding that the
SC First temporarily shuts down 43 branches due to strike

Jul 11, 2011

SC First Bank, the South Korean unit of Standard Chartered Plc., said Monday it had temporarily shut down operations at 43 branches in a bid to minimize the impact of a prolonged labor strike. Unionized workers at SC First Bank launched an indefinite strike on June 27 in protest of the management's move to introduce a performance-based pay system, causing bank customers to face inconvenience in us
21 dead, 100 injured as train derails in India

World NewsJul 10, 2011

LUCKNOW, India (AP) _ Rescuers searched through the wreckage of a packed express train for people trapped inside after it derailed in northern India on Sunday, killing at least 21 and injuring more than 100 others, officials said. The Kalka Mail train was on its way to Kalka, in the foothills of the Himalayas, from Howrah, a station near Kolkata in eastern India, when 12 coaches and the engine
Boat sinks on Russia's Volga, 61 missing

World NewsJul 10, 2011

MOSCOW (AP) _ A passenger boat sank on the Volga River in Russia Sunday, killing at least one person and leaving 61 missing, officials said. Regional emergencies ministry spokesman Marat Rakhmatullin said the Bulgaria sank in the middle of the river in the Tatarstan region, about 450 miles (750 kilometers) east of Moscow.. He said 173 passengers and crew were onboard when the boat went down
8 dead, 4 missing in storms in south

Social affairsJul 10, 2011

At least eight people were killed and four were missing after torrential rains hit southern parts of South Korea over the weekend, emergency officials said Sunday. Since Friday, as much as 40 centimeters of rain has fallen in South Gyeongsang and Jeolla provinces, leaving tens of thousands of hectares of farmland submerged and nearly 90 homes flooded. On Sunday, two old women, aged 92 and 86, were
Korea considers new immigration office

Jul 10, 2011

The government has taken the first steps of creating an exclusive agency to take oversee the nation’s policies on immigration and multiculturalism, officials said Sunday. The Ministry of Strategy and Finance gave public notice of a bid to analyze foreign immigration agencies and study measures to attract a talented workforce from abroad. The ministry plans to streamline immigration policy over the
Abuse at barracks cause of escalating concern in Korea

DefenseJul 10, 2011

Defense minister orders full-scale inspection of all military unitsAlthough his son will not join the military for another 10 years, Moon Young-sook is already apprehensive that his boy could suffer the “appalling” human rights abuses said to be widespread there.“I feel more worried than before as it is said that such abuses are still taking place in many units, not in just a few. When we heard of
11 people charged with forming anti-state entity

Social affairsJul 10, 2011

Prosecutors are investigating 11 people on charges of establishing an anti-state organization under a directive from North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, officials said Sunday.Among them was a member of the Korea Higher Education Research Institute, which spearheaded a nationwide campaign to halve college tuitions, triggering criticism that the probe aims to stifle voices against a government poli
S. Korea, South Sudan establish ties

Foreign affairsJul 10, 2011

The South Korean foreign ministry said Sunday it had established diplomatic relations with South Sudan, congratulating the world’s newest state on its formal independence.The diplomatic accord was signed in South Sudan between South Korean Cabinet minister Lee Jae-oh and Deng Alor Kuol, the African nation’s foreign minister on Saturday, the ministry said in a statement.“With the establishment of d
Lee offers to aid Ethiopia development

PoliticsJul 10, 2011

President, first lady join volunteer work; thank nation for Korean War helpPresident Lee Myung-bak continued volunteer work in Ethiopia on Sunday, working on construction sites for public restrooms and a village hall in a rural area, before his weeklong tour of Africa.Lee and First Lady Kim Yoon-ok helped repair wells and fences during their visit to a rural village, joined medics’ examinations of