Schools across Korea are on high alert as cases of whooping cough, a highly contagious respiratory illness, surge among students in different regions. Daegu city government officials reported 73 cases of the respiratory disease as of last Thursday, the highest number in the past decade. This is a significant increase from the four cases reported in all of last year. Of the 73 cases, 65 involve students from elementary, middle and high schools in Daegu. Whooping cough, also known as pertussis o

The South Korean police said Wednesday that they would not press criminal charges against the parents of students or officials at a Daejeon school, saying they found no evidence of wrongdoing on their part related to last year’s suicide death of a teacher. Eight parents and two officials of Daejeon Yonsan Elementary School were under investigation for charges including obstruction of performance of official duties, with claims of alleged "excessive and malicious" complaints aga

Do you find that kids today seem to lack patience and throw tantrums more often? A team of Korean psychiatrists point to YouTube as a potential culprit in their recently published study. Professor Shin Yun-mi and researchers at Ajou University studied 195 children aged 5 to 8 for 3 years between 2018 and 2021, measuring their temperament, YouTube usage patterns, and emotional and behavioral problems. Their findings suggest frequent YouTube use negatively impacts children’s temperament, a

Hangeul Party, an event aimed at promoting the beauty of Hangeul, which has played a crucial role in shaping Korean culture, was held in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City from June 21 to 24. The event was hosted and organized by the nongovernmental organization Hangeul Planet and The Korea Herald and sponsored by HiteJinro, South Korea's dominant soju and beer seller. At the Hangeul Party, students who major in Korean language at two Vietnamese universities -- the University of Economics and

UN says Seoul city's policy responding to Nth Room case sets example

Doctors, government clash at Assembly over quota hike

Korean National Police Agency has been embroiled in a controversy over an anonymous claim that it dispatched a strike unit to Monday's deadly battery plant fire site without gas masks. Police told local media that the controversial action was due to the officers being deployed in the area that was over 100 meters away from the battery plant in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul. A person claiming to be a member of the police special operation unit said Tuesday that the unit had been s

Son Woong-jung, father of South Korea national soccer team captain Son Heung-min, and two of the coaches at his soccer academy have been accused of verbally and physically abusing a youth athlete, local police said Wednesday. Parents of the child in question filed a complaint with authorities on March 19 against Son and two coaches at the Son Football Academy, where the elder Son is the director, in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. They said that Son had verbally abused their son for making mistak

Trash-filled balloons sent by North Korea disrupted the takeoff and landing of multiple airplanes at Incheon Airport early Wednesday. According to the Incheon International Airport Corp., the balloons caused delays of operations related to domestic and international flights that were scheduled to take off or land there between 1:46 a.m. and 4:44 a.m. The runways were fully operational as of Wednesday morning. Officials explained that the restriction was due to concerns that balloons could get

Three officials at lithium battery maker Aricell were booked Wednesday for allegedly violating the industrial safety laws in connection with this week's deadly factory fire that claimed 23 lives, labor authorities said. The labor ministry's special investigation team said the government issued an order for Aricell to completely suspend the entire operations of its gutted plant in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, as of 9 a.m. Wednesday. As many as 23 employees, mostly foreigners,

Samgyeopsal, or grilled pork belly, has long been a beloved staple of South Korean cuisine, cherished by locals for its affordability and pairing with soju. However, this popular after-work favorite is growing increasingly out of reach as average prices in Seoul surpassed 20,000 won ($14.39) per serving for the first time, according to data from the Korea Consumer Agency. This price increase represents a more than 20 percent increase from three years ago, when one serving — 200 grams &md

A descendent of Colombian war veteran speaks about connection between her family, S. Korea

Most victims were foreign day laborers; experts cite communication, training failures as potential factors that added to deaths

Government officials and community leaders in the southeastern city of Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, jointly issued a public apology Tuesday for an infamous gang rape case that occurred two decades ago, saying it was "all of our responsibility." "We all share the responsibility to make a better community, yet we (the people of Miryang) have not apologized or reflected on this tragedy, just because it is not directly related to our family or friends," said Mayor An Bye

Case likely to be deadliest incident for foreign workers in Korea; Aricell executives banned from leaving country for allegedly violating safety legislation