The city government of Seoul opened the doors to a more dynamic skyline in South Korea's capital city on Thursday by scrapping the apartment building height limit, a move that could prop up Seoul's chilly housing market. The 2040 Seoul Plan confirmed Thursday will immediately put an end to the floor limit for new residential buildings across Seoul, introduced in 2013 by since-deceased former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Seoul has prohibited any plans

A man in his 60s has been charged for illegally practicing medicine for 27 years, the authorities said Thursday. According to the authorities, the man practiced medicine for over 27 years in more than 60 different hospitals with a forged license. Suwon District Prosecutors' Office charged the man with forgery and violation of the Health Crime Control Act on Monday, authorities said Thursday. The charges regard treating patients and prescribing medicine at general hospitals and orthopedics c

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell for the second consecutive day to come below 65,000 on Thursday, as the government has been on alert over a wintertime surge and began requiring a pre-entry negative virus test result for entrants from China. The country confirmed 64,106 new coronavirus infections, including 194 from overseas, bringing the total to 29,363,272, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Following a weeklong downturn to around the 20,000 level, the daily caselo

The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol is considering suspending a 2018 inter-Korean summit agreement if North Korea violates the South's territory again, officials said Thursday. The Pyongyang Joint Declaration was signed by then President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un after their September 2018 summit in Pyongyang. The possibility of suspending it comes after Yoon instructed the presidential National Security Office on Wednesday to consider suspending a military tension reduct

A 2.4 magnitude earthquake struck waters off the southern island of Jeju on Thursday, the state weather agency said. The quake occurred in waters 64 kilometers east-northeast of Seogwipo City on Jeju at 12:28 a.m., the Korea Meteorological Administration said. The epicenter was at a latitude of 33.38 degrees north and a longitude of 127.23 degrees east at a depth of 24 km, the agency said, adding no damage is expected. (Yonhap)

WASHINGTON -- The United States is concerned about North Korea's disregard of a tension-reduction agreement it signed with South Korea in 2018, a state department official said Wednesday. "We are concerned about the DPRK's apparent disregard of the 2018 comprehensive military agreement, and we call on it to end its irresponsible and escalatory behavior," department press secretary Ned Price said during a daily press briefing. DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Repub

WASHINGTON -- The United States will continue to enhance its joint defense readiness with South Korea and Japan by conducting additional joint military exercises against growing North Korean threats, a White House official said Wednesday. John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, also highlighted that the US has devoted additional intelligence gathering and military capabilities to the region to that end. "You have seen in just recent weeks some bilater

South Korea’s Education Ministry said Wednesday it would make sure that major historical events, including the Gwangju Uprising, are reflected in new textbooks to be published in 2025. The announcement came a day after opposition lawmakers raised the allegation that the democratization movement against the military government in 1980 was intentionally taken out of the ministry's guidelines for textbook writers. Education Minister Lee Ju-ho said via a press release that the ministry wi

Police unlikely to seek charges against safety minister, Seoul mayor

Potential gravity of Lee Ki-young's crime sparks debate over release of suspects' police photograph

Agreement sealed 5 years ago in Pyongyang was centerpiece to Moon Jae-in's NK policy

Police busted a nightclub in Gangnam, southern Seoul, for providing a place for lewd acts such as partner swapping and group sex last year, arresting the owner of the club and four employees. But there will be no criminal charges against the clients of the club as they were there voluntarily, according to local reports quoting investigators. The case was sent to the prosecution in October and is currently being investigated by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office, they said. Five people

Police have put a Chinese national on the wanted list after he ran away and refused to be isolated, although he had tested positive for COVID-19 upon his arrival to Korea. According to Incheon Metropolitan Police and disease control authorities, the 41-year-old was tested under the new COVID-19 mandate applied to travelers from China on Tuesday, and was confirmed to have the virus later in the evening. He was sent to a hotel on Yeongjongdo near Incheon Airport, but fled while waiting to be assig

Former North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho appears to have been executed last year, a Japanese newspaper reported Wednesday. Ri seems to have been executed around between the summer and fall of last year, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported, citing unnamed multiple sources. Four or five officials from North Korea's foreign ministry appear to have been executed successively around the time of Ri's death, according to the report. It added that some unspecific issues related to the North Ko

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell below 80,000 on Wednesday amid lingering concerns over a wintertime surge, and the government has taken steps to tighten entry rules to prevent the virus inflow from China and other regions. The country confirmed 78,575 new coronavirus infections, including 172 from overseas, bringing the total to 29,299,166, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. It is slightly lower from the previous day's 81,056 cases. The latest figure also marke