The temperatures in the spent fuel pool of the No. 5 reactor at the Dai-Ichi nuclear plant in Fukushima Prefecture, northern Japan, are falling, Kyodo News reported, citing Tokyo Electric Power Co.    As of 9 a.m. today, the temperature had fallen to 67.6 degrees Celsius from 68.8 degrees four hours earlier, Kyodo said. (Bloomberg)

   OSAKA (AFP) - The operator of the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant on Saturday said engineers bored three holes in each of the roofs of the buildings of reactors 5 and 6 to avoid a potential gas explosion.

  SEOUL/NIIGATA (Yonhap) -- The South Korean government has pulled all members of its rescue team sent to quake-stricken Japan out of the ravaged city of Sendai due to concerns about the workers' possible exposure to radiation, a senior government official said Saturday.   "Some members of the team who had remained in Sendai are moving to Niigata, where the main force is staying," said the officia

   OSAKA, Japan (AFP) - Electricity is expected to be restored to four reactors at a stricken Japanese atomic plant on Saturday to power cooling systems, the nuclear and safety agency said.

   SEOSAN (Yonhap) -- A South Korean forestry helicopter crashed into a reservoir Sunday, leaving one crew member dead while two others were rescued, authorities said.   The Korea Forest Service (KFS) chopper carrying three crew members crashed into a reservoir in Seosan, some 277 kilometers south of Seoul, at 6:47 a.m., a few minutes after taking off for an extinguishing operation in the nearby M

   WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Samsung SDI Co. has agreed to pay US$32 million in fines for trying to fix the prices of color display tubes used for computer monitors, the Justice Department said Friday.   "Samsung SDI Company Ltd. has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $32 million criminal fine for its role in a global conspiracy to fix prices, reduce output and allocate market shares o

   South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan left for quake-ravaged Japan on Saturday for annual three-way cooperation talks with his Japanese and Chinese counterparts that were overshadowed by deepening fears of a potential nuclear disaster following the already-devastating earthquake and tsunami.   The one-day meeting among Kim, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto and Chinese Foreign M

   SEOUL/TOKYO (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak paid a visit to the Japanese embassy in Seoul Friday to convey a message of condolences for the victims of last week's massive earthquake and tsunami.   Lee signed a condolence book, writing, "All of our people offer condolences for the victims. (We) are confident that Japan will quickly recover (from damage) and the Republic of Korea will be with

   JEJU ISLAND (Yonhap) -- South Korea promised Friday its full support to help its southern resort island win global recognition as an awe-inspiring natural site.   Jeju Island has been vying against 27 other natural sites to become one of the "New7Wonders of Nature," a project initiated by the New7Wonders Foundation, a Switzerland-based nonprofit organization, in 2007.   The finalists include th

The National Assembly on Friday gave the green light to the reappointment of Choi See-joong as chairman of Korea Communications Commission despite  fierce denunciation from the opposition parties. The parliamentary committee on culture, broadcasting and telecommunications adopted the ruling Grand National Party's confirmation hearing report on Choi during a meeting which the main opposition Democr

South Korea's foreign ministry said Friday it will convene an interagency meeting on Saturday to discuss countermeasures after the United Nations authorized military actions to curb Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi.The meeting will also check the economic impact from the unrest in Libya and "strongly urge" some 100 Korean nationals remaining in the turmoil-torn North African country to leave there, an

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) -- Moammar Gadhafi's forces are bombarding the last rebel-held western city as the international community discusses how to enforce a no-fly zone and protect the Libyan people.   A doctor says at least six people were killed Friday when tanks moved into Misrata and opened fire. He says a hospital and a mosque were shelled.   The doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity beca