The number of daily novel coronavirus cases in South Korea hit 5,174, its lowest count in seven months, government data showed Monday. It marked the lowest point since June 27, 2022, when Korea counted 3,419 daily cases, according to data by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The latest figure has brought Korea's accumulated number of COVID-19 cases to 30.35 million. In general, figures announced on Mondays tend to be lower due to fewer people taking tests over the weekend. St

　The poverty rate among South Korean senior citizens has been on the mend but is still high among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a report showed. 　The relative poverty rate of South Koreans aged 65 and older stood at 37.6 percent in 2021, down 1.3 percentage points from a year earlier, according to the report on sustainable development goals by Statistics Korea. 　The figure for male senior citizens came to 31.3 percent, while that for women amounted to 4

The southwestern city of Gwangju suffered a major water outage Sunday due to a valve malfunction at a water purification plant, officials said. The valve was closed shut in the process of fixing an error in the communications system that automatically opens and closes valves, according to municipal officials. The malfunction was detected at 6 a.m. and fixed at 5:30 p.m., but water supplies were expected to return to normal around midnight after removing muddy water from pipelines. Residents comp

The Korea International Cooperation Agency said Sunday it is participating in a project to build "peace villages" in Vietnam in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme. The project involves removing land mines and unexploded bombs from central Vietnam's Binh Dinh, Quang Ngai and Hue provinces. The project, which began last year, has a goal of establishing sustainable cities and communities, ending hunger, and achieving food security. KOICA will provide 31.7 b

High court judges in Seoul are set to resume trials on forced labor issues involving Japanese companies in May, regardless of whether Japan continues not to respond to the court's request to transmit judicial documents to defendants there. The Seoul High Court on Jan. 31 carried out "services of public notice" on two civil court trials where forced labor victims individually seek damages to companies that had mobilized them during World War II. Under the "services of public n

Nearly 85 percent of children reported from domestic violence situations were sent back to their homes without measures to protect them, a report showed Sunday. According to the report by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, of the 31,804 reported cases of child abuse at home in 2021, 84.6 percent of children were returned to their families of origin where they had suffered abuse and were likely to face mistreatment again. Only 14.5 percent of the children were separated from their families a

Go Do-won, chairman of the Morning Letter Cultural Foundation and independent lawmaker Yang Hyang-ja will hold a ceremony to inaugurate a foundation for young overseas Koreans around the world on Feb. 23, the two said Sunday in a news release. The foundation, named K-Diaspora World Solidarity, aims to provide young overseas Koreans with opportunities to strengthen their connection to the home country, they added. The organization will serve as a platform to connect 2 million overseas Korean teen

South Korea reported 12,051 new cases of COVID-19, the lowest for a Sunday in about eight months, as a downward trend continued. The total caseload came to 30,350,199, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The new cases marked the lowest daily outbreak reported on a Sunday since July 3, when 10,036 cases were reported. The number of critically ill patients came to 268, down from 284 the previous day, marking the lowest daily figure in 107 days. Sunday's tally is also down fr

South Korea reported an African swine fever case from a local farm in the eastern region of Gangwon Province, officials said Sunday. The latest ASF case was found in Yangyang in Gangwon Province, some 174 kilometers east of Seoul, according to authorities. It is the fourth ASF outbreak that South Korea has reported this year, following ones in Pocheon, Cheorwon and Gimpo. Authorities issued a 48-hour standstill order for pig farms and slaughterhouses in areas in the province, except for the nort

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed below 20,000 for the 10th consecutive day Saturday, signaling a solid downtrend in the spread of the virus here. The country reported 12,805 new cases, including 24 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30.34 million, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The Saturday tally is down from 14,624 the previous week and 13,504 the previous day. The country added 16 COVID-19 deaths, bringing the death toll to 33,713, the KD

A planned exchange visit to a US town by South Korean high school students last year was canceled after animal activists there raised the issue of dog meat farms operating in the area the students are from, it was revealed Friday. Palisades Park, New Jersey – a twin town of Gangwha County in Incheon-- decided to cancel the planned three-week exchange program in June last year. The decision was made after some activists reported to the borough’s council about illegal dog meat activi

Seungri, a former member of K-pop boy band Big Bang, was released from Yeoju Prison in Gyeonggi Province on Thursday after completing his 18-month sentence, according to the Ministry of Justice. Seungri, whose real name is Lee Seung-hyun, was indicted in January 2020 over his involvement in the “Burning Sun scandal,” a far-reaching sex and drug scandal since 2018. The 33-year-old singer began his military service during trial and was sentenced to three years in prison in a military c

Koreans' pursuit of famed teachers dates back to 1960s, but internet and online classes elevated their status to quasi-celebrities

The Justice Ministry on Thursday said it would allow illegal residents from Turkey and Syria in South Korea to return home immediately without having to declare their departures in advance. Under South Korea's immigration rule, illegal residents should report their plans to leave the country online within three to 15 calendar days prior to the departure. If not, they are subject to pay a fine. The temporary measure exempting illegal residents from the two quake-hit countries, will be effect

Celebrities, corporations and ordinary citizens of South Korea are rallying to help Turkey and Syria in the aftermath of the earthquakes. Celebrities including Lee Hyeri of the K-pop girl group Girl’s Day and actor Yoo Inna donated to people affected by earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Lee donated 50 million won ($40,000) to UNICEF’s emergency campaign for children in the earthquake-stricken area, according to her agency Creative Group Ing. Comedian Lee Yong-jin, also known as &ldquo