The government will increase the weekly number of international flights to the United States, Europe and other COVID-19 quarantine-free nations by 100 flights every month starting in May in line with growing demand for overseas travel, Interior Minister Jeon Hae-cheol said Wednesday. The country's COVID-19 wave has been on the downturn for the third week in a row, and demand for overseas travel is expected to go up as foreign nations are gradually lifting quarantine requirements after passing t

South Korea's new coronavirus cases remained in the 200,000s for the second straight day on Wednesday, as the spread of the omicron variant has slowed down after peaking last month. The country reported 286,294 new COVID-19 infections, including 22 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 14,553,644, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The daily tally remained below the 300,000s for the sixth consecutive day. The daily tally has been on the decline after rea

Pusan National University on Tuesday made a final decision to nullify the 2015 admission of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk's daughter into its medical school for using forged documents on the application. The school in the southeastern port city of Busan had tentatively decided in August last year to cancel Cho Min's admission to its Graduate School of Medicine and finalized the decision in a general faculty meeting Tuesday.  Tuesday's decision came after the Supreme Court convicted he

A forum held Tuesday by the office of Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun, a four-term lawmaker of the main conservative People Power Party, discussed the future of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which the incoming administration has vowed to do away with. The party’s President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol plans to abolish the ministry, which was among his key election campaign pledges. In an opening address, Yoon accused the ministry of “aligning with the administration in power, rathe

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 infections rebounded to over 260,000 during the 24 hours of Monday, the government reported Tuesday. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the country’s daily COVID-19 cases came to 266,135, up 138,945 from the previous day’s 127,190. The total caseload rose to 14,267,401. The country’s daily coronavirus cases jumped, largely as more people received COVID-19 tests after the weekend. The number of COVID-19 tests du

Environment Ministry releases guideline on controversial single-use product ban

BERLIN (AP) -- Temperatures on Earth will shoot past a key danger point unless greenhouse gas emissions fall faster than countries have committed, the world's top body of climate scientists said Monday, warning of the consequences of inaction but also noting hopeful signs of progress. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change revealed "a litany of broken climate promises" by governments and corporations, accusing them of stok

Working class heroes or underdog stories are a beloved topic in pop culture. Take John Lennon’s 1975 song “Working Class Hero” in which he sings “There’s room at the top they are telling you still.” The next line goes, “But first you must learn how to smile as you kill.” In the 2017 single “Mic Drop,“ BTS sings, “Who says my spoon is dirty” ”I don’t care, when I grab the mic, I have several gold spoons.”

The Seoul city government will expand late night bus routes later this month in line with the country's gradual return to normalcy from the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said Tuesday. The routes for night buses operating from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. will be increased to 14 from nine, with 100 buses to run on the lines, up 28 from now, according to the city government. The N65 route, currently running from Gaehwa-dong in western Seoul to Siheung-dong in southern Seoul, will also become

South Korea's new coronavirus cases jumped to over 260,000 on Tuesday as the spread of the omicron variant slowed down after peaking out last month. The country reported 266,135 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total caseload to 14,267,401, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Tuesday's tally marked a sharp climb from 127,190 reported Monday. The number of new daily cases usually shrinks at the beginning of the week due to less testing over the weekend. The number

Ending social distancing in two weeks may be “hasty,” a COVID-19 adviser on President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s transition committee said Monday, raising concerns over the government’s intention to dial back protocols. Dr. Jung Ki-suck, one of the COVID-19 experts on the presidential transition committee, said during an interview with a public broadcaster that “lifting restrictions completely two weeks from now seems a bit hasty.” On keeping mask mandates indo

Those recovered find new perspectives on life and friendship, indoor hobbies and quarantine-friendly apps

IT giant eyes expansion into entertainment business, mulling acquisition of SM Entertainment

Government expects number of COVID-19 deaths, severe cases to peak this week or next

More than 12,000 migrant workers will enter South Korea in the first half of this year to relieve labor shortage in farming and fishing areas, the justice ministry said Monday. Of the total of 12,330 migrant workers invited to the country, 100 from the Philippines first arrived here on Monday, with 200 more expected to come by Wednesday. The 300 Filipino workers have been invited by the Yanggu county government in the eastern Gangwon Province ahead of the busy farming season. Last week, the just