The rate of COVID-19 infection among those aged 18 and under has surpassed that of adults, according to government data. Amid the increasing number of new coronavirus infections among young people, Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae asked parents to get their children vaccinated. The minister’s request came as concerns over children’s infections have mounted, particularly after the government allowed all schools across the country to resume full-time in-person classes this month. Yo

An appellate court on Friday reversed a local court’s ruling of life imprisonment for an adoptive mother who murdered her toddler daughter, to a sentence of 35 years in prison, citing lack of proof for “such a heavy sentence.” The court upheld the lower court’s ruling of a five-year prison sentence for the adoptive father, holding him responsible for child abuse in the highly publicized case. The Seoul High Court admitted that the mother, surnamed Jang, is guilty of m

The South Korean government has decided to postpone announcing an emergency COVID-19 response plan until Monday, Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said Friday. The minister’s announcement followed a government meeting on Thursday, where health authorities discussed the possibility of reintroducing toughened measures to contain the resurgence of the coronavirus. They, however, failed to come to a conclusion and have delayed the announcement. On Friday, the country reported 3,901 new COVID

Seoul says prior consultation has proceeded amicably under the Biden admin, unlike recent years

Expats’ overseas vaccine records not recognized here

President Moon Jae-in on Friday appointed two deputy directors of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), the presidential office said. Moon appointed Park Sun-won, head of the NIS's planning and coordination office, as the first deputy director, while choosing Chun Se-young, senior official at the NIS's counter-espionage team, as the second deputy director. The first deputy director is tasked with gleaning intelligence on North Korea and overseas affairs, while the second deputy director is

Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential nominee of the main opposition People Power Party, is neck and neck with ruling Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung with 42 percent support against 39.8 percent, a survey showed Friday. The difference between the two was 2.2 percentage points, which was within the margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level, according to the survey of 1,005 adults conducted Tuesday and Wednesday by the Korea Society Opinion Instit

Some 900 victims of the brutal crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju launched a damage suit against the government Friday, a law firm said, days after the death of former President Chun Doo-hwan, accused of ordering the crackdown. LKB & Partners said it has filed the suit on behalf of the plaintiffs who were subject to brutal violence by soldiers during the democracy protests in May 1980 in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, to demand the govern

Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), on Friday slammed the Moon Jae-in administration's nuclear phase-out policy, calling it "disaster caused from ignorance." The nuclear phase-out scheme set by Moon's government centers on slowly breaking away from nuclear energy by refraining from building additional plants while retiring old ones. Under the roadmap, South Korea plans to decrease the number of nuclear plants in operation to 17 b

Ruling Democratic Party presidential nominee Lee Jae-myung pledged Friday to expand government subsidies for the electric vehicle industry and increase the production of the cars. In a Facebook post, Lee said government subsidies have fallen far short of the amount needed to produce enough EVs to meet consumer demand. He noted the biggest obstacles to getting more EVs on roads are their high price and lack of charging facilities. "I will drastically expand the scope of subsidies in order

South Korea is monitoring North Korea's nuclear and missile activities in close cooperation with the United States, the unification ministry said Friday, following reports the North appears to be continuing the operation of a nuclear reactor at its mainstay Yongbyon complex. 38 North, a US monitoring website, said Wednesday steam was detected emanating from the 5-megawatt reactor in an indication at least one generator is in operation, citing recent satellite imagery. Asked to comment on the r

The remains of a soldier killed in the 1950-53 Korean War have been identified through DNA analysis more than a decade after they were recovered from a former battle site, the defense ministry said Friday. The identification of the remains of Pfc. Lim Ho-dae came as his daughter registered her DNA sample with the government. She was less than a month old when her father joined the war. Lim's remains were excavated from Hwacheon, 118 kilometers east of Seoul, in 2010. He was found along with ot

South Korea's military reported 19 additional COVID-19 cases Friday, down nine from a day earlier, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,264. Two Army conscripts based in Paju, north of Seoul, contracted the virus after one of their fellows was infected. An officer stationed at a unit under the direct control of the ministry in Seoul and an Army conscript stationed in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of the capital city, also tested positive following a case at their bases.

More than half of South Koreans believe an inter-Korean summit at the Beijing Winter Olympics, slated for February, will not be possible, a survey showed Friday. According to the survey on 1,000 adults by the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council on Nov. 20 and 21, 53.9 percent said an inter-Korean summit during the Winter Olympics would not be possible, while 40.1 percent said it would be. South Korea has sought to use the Beijing Games to create fresh momentum for the resumption of stalled d

South Korea's Air Force chief will visit Colombia and Peru next week as part of military diplomacy focusing largely on strengthening arms industry cooperation with the South American countries, his office said Friday. During his visit to the Colombian capital city of Bogota, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Park In-ho will attend the Expodefensa 2021, one of the largest defense exhibitions in the region. Park also plans to separately hold talks with Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano Aponte