Authorities again promise stern response despite falling short of vows before

South Korea has confirmed 3,245 more cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant over the past week, health authorities said Wednesday. New delta variant cases accounted for all of new variant cases detected last week, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). There are four different kinds of variants. The tally indicates the Delta variant is the dominant strain of the coronavirus in South Korea, making it more difficult for health authorities to curb the sprea

A group of some 170 fans of BTS member V, together with an environmental group, on Wednesday dedicated a grove they built alongside Seoul's Han River to the K-pop star. The Korean Federation for Environmental Movement said the grove of four zelkova and some 1,200 bridal-wreath trees, named Forest V No. 1, was formed on the Han River Park near the southern end of Jamsil Bridge a day earlier in a joint project to honor V, or Kim Tae-hyung. It is the latest urban forest-building collaboration bet

More than 1,200 teenagers have fallen victim to online sex crimes so far this year, an elevenfold jump from 2018, government data showed Wednesday. The number of teenage victims rose sharply from 111 in 2018 to 1,268 this year, according to the gender ministry data released by Rep. Yang Kum-hee of the main opposition People Power Party. The ministry tallied the number based on data from the state-run Women's Human Rights Institute of Korea. Digital sex crime victims totaled 14,070 between A

South Korea saw its new coronavirus cases rise by nearly 500 cases Wednesday, but the caseload stayed below 2,000 for the 12th straight day, as the country continued its vaccine campaign aimed at returning to normalcy. The country reported 1,571 new cases, including 1,556 local infections, raising the total caseload to 346,088, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Wednesday's tally is up by 498 from the 1,073 counted the previous day. The death toll came to 2,698, up

A Chinese fishing boat capsized in waters off the southwestern city of Gunsan on Wednesday, leaving three crew members unconscious and three others missing, Coast Guard officials said. According to the Coast Guard, the 239-ton vessel capsized shortly after midnight in waters 124 kilometers southwest of Gunsan's Eocheong Island. Of the 15 crewmen aboard the ship, eight have been rescued by the Coast Guard and another Chinese boat that was fishing alongside the capsized vessel.   F

Korea’s top forensic pathologist on challenges of investigating post-vaccine deaths to importance of COVID-19 autopsies

Proportion of sexual misdemeanors infringing teachers’ rights exceed 10% for 1st time in 2020

The first snow of the season fell on a portion of Mount Seorak in the northeast of the country Tuesday, 15 days earlier than last year, park authorities said. Flakes began falling at about 10 a.m. around Jungcheong Shelter, 1,676 meters above sea level, according to the Seoraksan National Park Office. The temperature was 0.4 C and the wind speed was 0.6 meters per second at that time. Snowfall was too light to accumulate, officials said. The season's first snow event occurred 15 days earlier

Organizers will be punished if rally violates quarantine rules, prime minister warns

Police said Tuesday they have referred rapper NO:EL to the prosecution after arresting him on charges of driving without a license, refusing a breathalyzer test and headbutting a police officer. The incident took place on the night of Sept. 18 when the 21-year-old rapper, whose real name is Chang Yong-jun, caused a fender bender while driving his Mercedes in southern Seoul. His driver's license was revoked at the time. Police sent to the scene asked Chang to take a breathalyzer test, but he re

Students infected with COVID-19 or in self-quarantine for possible coronavirus exposure will be assigned to separate testing sites for next month's state-administered college entrance exam to ensure a safe test environment, the education ministry said Tuesday. About 509,800 high school seniors and graduates are set to take this year's College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) slated for Nov. 18. It marks the second year the college entrance exam will be held against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pa

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed below 2,000 for the 11th straight day Tuesday, as vaccine effects are taking hold with rising inoculations amid preparations for a gradual return to normalcy. The country reported 1,073 new cases, including 1,048 local infections, raising the total caseload to 344,518, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Tuesday's tally is up from the 1,050 counted the previous day, which marked the lowest daily number since July 7, but down

South Korea has launched a 16.2 billion-won ($13.9 million) project to develop a space weather forecast system by 2024 to ensure the stable operations of military assets, such as high-altitude drones, the state arms procurement agency said Tuesday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said it signed a contract with the local company, Satrec Initiative Co., last week to develop the system to predict space weather conditions and issue related alerts. Once developed, the envision

People aged 65 and older made up 16.5 percent of South Korea’s population this year, a report showed, highlighting concerns that the fast-aging demographic transition could pose a drag on the country’s economy. According to the report by Statistics Korea, the number of people aged 65 and older stood at 8.53 million this year. The South Korean population is projected to peak in 2028 before going on a downward curve, the report showed. However, the graying of South Korea will acce