The president of South Korean broadcaster MBC offered to resign Friday over the government regulator's refusal to approve a planned merger of two regional stations, the broadcaster said.   Kim Jae-chul submitted a letter of resignation to MBC's largest shareholder, the Foundation for Broadcast Culture, the company said.   The resignation was "to take responsibility for the Korea Communications C

A 35-year-old man was arrested on Thursday for sexually assaulting several would-be entertainers he had enticed disguising himself as a TV program director.The suspect, identified by his surname Kim, was charged with attempted rape and other crimes, Yeongdeungpo Police Station in southern Seoul said.He had served a 10-month term until May for sex crimes.According to police, he tried to rape an asp

Police in Cheonan are investigating five male high school students who allegedly gang-raped a 16-year-old runaway girl.They were booked without detention on Friday.According to the police investigation, the girl, surnamed Park, ran away from home on March 17 and the five suspects allegedly lured her by offering a place to stay. They are accused of repeatedly raping the girl at a studio in Cheonan.

South Korea could seek international arbitration in case North Korea disposes of seized South Korean assets at a scenic mountain resort in the isolated country, a research arm of the legislature said Thursday.The two Koreas have been at odds over the assets at Mount Kumgang, the site of stalled joint tour programs that had served as a key cash cow for the North.South Korea could follow in the foot

Heavy rains have battered North Korea, according to state media and an international relief agency Thursday, as more rain is expected in the coming days amid fears of severe damage and casualties in the impoverished communist nation.The most affected areas are the southern and eastern parts of North Korea. Nearly 100 millimeters of rain poured down in the southern province of Haeju in just three h

The toll from this week's record rainfall has risen to 53 deaths and 14 people missing in landslides and flooding across South Korea, the country's disaster management agency said Thursday.A series of mudslides that hit southern parts of Seoul on Wednesday left 16 dead, another person missing and 20 others injured, while 13 people were killed and four were injured when a landslide engulfed a lodgi

South Korea said Thursday it will ban two Japanese lawmakers from visiting an island near the country’s easternmost islets of Dokdo, a move that has been rekindling criticism over Tokyo’s longstanding territorial claims. Four lawmakers of Japan’s opposition Liberal Democratic Party said last week they plan to visit the island Ulleungdo on Aug. 1 to see for themselves “how South Koreans feel” about

Seoul attractions have been covered at least once a day on average by international news media in the first half of the year, Seoul City government said.Worldwide news media have broadcast the capital 285 times in news coverage and TV broadcasts since January this year. The figure showed that the main focus of many international reports has expanded from the city’s tradition to little known attrac