Last year's deadly crowd crush at Itaewon, Seoul claimed more than lives. Recent data showed 1,316 firemen dispatched at the scene are still suffering from the psychological impact of the incident. According to the National Fire Agency data revealed by Rep. Oh Young-hwan of the main opposition Democratic Party, the rescue workers are receiving treatment for various side effects with relation to the tragedy. The deadly incident occurred Oct. 29, 2022 when the crowd became concentrated in a small

PARIS (AP) — The Louvre Museum in Paris and Versailles Palace evacuated visitors and staff Saturday after receiving bomb threats, police said. The French government started deploying 7,000 troops to increase security around the country after a fatal school stabbing by a suspected Islamic extremist. The evacuations of two of the world's most-visited tourist sites come amid heightened vigilance around France following Friday's school attack, and global tensions linked to the war be

South Korea is witnessing a surge in sexual assault cases on subway trains, with 784 incidents reported from January to August 2023 alone, according to data from the police and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport. The data, made public by Rep. Oh Young-hwan of the Democratic Party of Korea, shows a growing trend of assaults that coincides with a post-pandemic surge in public transit usage. The numbers, which include 529 cases of groping or unwanted contact and 255 cases of illici

North Korea threatened Friday to stage the "most powerful and rapid first strike" against US strategic assets deployed to the Korean Peninsula, in the latest bellicose rhetoric that underscored Pyongyang's concerns about US military capabilities in the region. The nuclear-powered USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier docked at the southeastern port of Busan on Thursday for a five-day visit -- the first since September 2022 -- in a show of force against North Korea. The visit came soon aft

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joined with a top political rival Wednesday to create a wartime Cabinet to oversee the fight to avenge the gruesome weekend attack by Hamas militants. In the sealed-off Gaza Strip, Palestinian suffering mounted as Israeli bombardment demolished neighborhoods and the only power plant ran out of fuel. Netanyahu vowed to “crush and destroy” Hamas. “Every Hamas member is a dead man,” he said in a televised address. T

Controversy over the former presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, emerged once again with a lawmaker pointing out a change in regulations for its use during a parliamentary audit. Lee Byung-hoon, a lawmaker of the opposition Democratic Party of Korea, criticized the government, alleging that it has failed to fulfill its promise to return Cheong Wa Dae to the people, as the presidential office continues to use the facilities without restrictions. Lee further pointed out that the Ministry of Cultu

New defense minister says 2018 inter-Korean military pact restricts Seoul's monitoring of possible NK provocations

For a long time, the field of Korean studies in Europe remained in the shadow of Japanese and Chinese studies. But the global boom of Korean pop music, films and dramas has elevated the standing of Korean studies in recent years and is likely to continue doing so, said Anders Karlsson, senior lecturer and chair of the Centre of Korean Studies at SOAS University of London. The most noticeable development from when he started teaching in the field 23 years ago, Karlsson said, is diversification

HANGZHOU(Yonhap) -- Marking its return to international multisport competition after a five-year absence, North Korea dominated in weightlifting at the 19th Asian Games in China. Athletes and officials from the reclusive regime also generated headlines away from the field of play in and around Hangzhou. North Korea had been absent from the past two major international sports competitions. It skipped the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 2021, citing COVID-19 concerns. The International Olympic Committe

Israeli forces clashed with gunmen from the Palestinian group Hamas on Sunday, 24 hours after the militants launched a surprise attack on Israel in which about 500 people were killed in the deadliest day of violence in Israel for 50 years. The biggest incursion into Israel in decades could undermine US-backed efforts to forge regional security alignments that could threaten Palestinian aspirations for statehood and the ambitions of the group's main backer, Iran. Hamas fighters began their a

    JERUSALEM — Backed by a barrage of rockets, dozens of Hamas militants broke out of the blockaded Gaza Strip and into nearby Israeli towns, killing dozens and abducting others in an unprecedented surprise early morning attack during a major Jewish holiday Saturday. A stunned Israel launched airstrikes in Gaza, with its prime minister saying the country is now at war with Hamas and vowing to inflict an “unprecedented price.” In an assault of startling breadth , Hama

Crowd control, road closures in Seoul expected through weekend

Korean battery maker to invest W4tr in US plant to expand, speed up EV production for world's largest carmaker

Culture Minister nominee Yu In-chon said Tuesday that public figures should be careful when speaking out publicly, when asked about his thoughts on a social media post by a singer concerning Japan's discharge of contaminated water. “Although anyone is free to express their opinions, when it comes to celebrities or public figures who have social influence, they should be careful when they publicly speak about something because it comes along with responsibility," he said in a writ

The number of patients with depression in Korea has increased by more than 30 percent over the past five years, exceeding the milestone of 1 million for 2022, data showed Tuesday. According to data that Rep. Nam In-soon of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and the Health and Welfare Committee received from the National Health Insurance Service, the number of patients treated for depression has increased every year since 2018. From 752,976 in 2018, there were 799,011 in 2019, 832,378