A South Korean rapper recently received a one-year prison sentence following a public fight with another rapper, as well as for posting a video of a forced apology and drug use. The Seoul Western District Court found the 26-year-old defendant guilty of coercion by collective force, defamation and marijuana use. It also ordered him to participate in an 80-hour drug treatment program. The defendant got into an argument on Instagram with a 21-year-old rapper last year, which led to them schedulin

Medical schools that have been allocated additional seats anticipate opening a minimum of 1,500 new slots for the upcoming year, as they are set to make final decisions on their admissions availability following the government’s decision to grant flexibility in the quota allocation. The government earlier said it would allow medical schools to freely adjust new seats within a 50 to 100 percent range of the enrollment quota given to them for the 2025 academic year. It announced in February

Subsidy to be provided to married couples with newborns who don’t own homes for up to two years from 2025

A 2.2 magnitude earthquake struck near South Korea's southern county of Hapcheon on Sunday, the weather agency said. The quake struck 11 kilometers northeast of the county 242 km southeast of Seoul at 10:33 a.m. at a latitude of 35.61 degrees north and a longitude of 128.28 degrees east at a depth of 14 km, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. The agency advised people to watch out for their safety as shaking may be felt in areas near the epicenter of the quake. About 50 pe

The incoming head of South Korea's leading doctors' lobby group reiterated on Sunday the call for the government to scrap the planned medical school quota hike in order to initiate dialogue with the medical community. About 12,000 trainee doctors have left their worksites since Feb. 20 in protest of the plan to boost the number of medical students by 2,000, causing delays in medical treatments, with some emergency rooms partially limiting their treatment of critically ill patients. Lim

The new head of the doctors' association vowed Saturday to wage an all-out war against the government in case of any disadvantage to medical professors considering taking weekly breaks in support of the ongoing walkout by junior doctors. Lim Hyun-taek, the president-elect of the Korean Medical Association, is known for his hawkish stance in the ongoing stalemate with the government regarding an increase in the medical school enrollment quota. "The Ministry of Health and Welfare's treatment

Under new slogan, 'Amazing Tomorrow,' DDP hopes to shape future of city after 10 rocky years

North Korea on Saturday reiterated its commitment to launching more reconnaissance satellites into orbit this year after putting its first spy satellite into orbit in November. Pyongyang "will carry out an important mission to enhance its space reconnaissance capabilities as planned to monitor and control the US and other hostile forces' military movements and aggressive attempts," an unnamed spokesperson of the North's National Aerospace Technology Administration (NATA) said

North Korea on Saturday lashed out at the recent release of the United States' annual report on human rights situations in the reclusive country, calling it an act of interfering in the country's "internal affairs." Earlier this week, the US State Department released the 2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, pointing out that North Koreans remained exposed to various types of human rights abuses last year, including forced repatriations, extrajudicial killings, fo

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that he renewed calls for China to exert its influence to press North Korea to cease its "dangerous" activities and return to dialogue during his talks with top Chinese officials in Beijing. Blinken made the remarks during a press conference after he had separate meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong and other officials in the Chinese capital on the day. The secr

South Korea and the United States outlined their respective visions for a new bilateral defense cost-sharing deal during their first round of negotiations in Honolulu this week, the top US negotiator said Friday. Linda Specht, senior advisor and US lead negotiator for security agreements at the State Department, made the remarks after the initial round of talks over the deal, named the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) took place from Tuesday through Thursday. The talks are aimed at determining

South Korea and Japan could consider adopting a simplified entry procedure for people traveling between the two countries, as an effort to keep the momentum going in the dramatic improvement in bilateral relations, a Seoul official said Friday. The official made the suggestion as one of the possibilities that the two neighbors could explore, likening the idea to the Schengen Agreement in Europe that allows nationals of the signatory countries and eligible members to travel freely without borde

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday named a new chief prosecutor of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, after a vacancy of about three months. Oh Dong-woon, formerly a judge and attorney, was nominated to lead the CIO, which is currently spearheading a high-profile investigation into the death of a Marine in July last year. Cpl. Chae Su-geun died at the age of 20 when he was swept away in moving water during a search and rescue operation to find people who had gone miss

South Korea is preparing to establish a center for space security under the National Intelligence Service. Under the revisions to the presidential decree that took effect Tuesday, the NIS is set to operate the National Space Security Center, dedicated to intelligence activities concerning the space sector. With the center’s launch, the country’s spy agency will have the authority to respond to threats to space assets and systems of the country and other enemy threats in the space dom

Major rivals to hold talks for first time since Yoon took office in May 2022