A South Korean citizen has been detained by Russian authorities on charge of espionage, Russia's state-run news agency Tass reported late Monday. If confirmed, it would mark the first time a South Korean has been pressed with spy charges by Russia. According to the Tass, the individual was transferred from Vladivostok, where he had been detained, to Moscow for further investigation. He was detained earlier this year on alleged charges of passing the "top secret" information of Rus

South Korean prosecutors on Monday asked the court to sentence Cho Doo-soon to one year in prison, after the convicted child rapist broke his curfew and stepped outside of his home after dark late last year. The prosecution said Cho violated a legal order not to leave his home after 9 p.m., and left his residence in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province at around 9:05 p.m. on Dec. 4, where he allegedly wandered around the adjacently stationed police post. Officials also said Cho denied a police order to retu

South Korean court on Monday sentenced a 22-year-old man to two years in prison, suspended for two years, for starving himself in a bid to avoid mandatary military service. Gwangju District Court found the defendant guilty of violating the Military Service Act, which mandates all able-bodied male citizens to serve in the military for at least 18 months as of 2024. But men whose physical conditions are under certain standards can carry out alternate non-combat service for a similar period. Betwee

South Korean men's national soccer team head coach Hwang Sun-hong announced his 23-man squad Monday, which included Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in who fell from favor with the public for his recent scuffle with team captain Son Heung-min. The interim coach for the team acknowledged the public's concern over Lee, and said addressing the issue could provide a chance to strengthen team chemistry. "I've talked to both players, and resolving (such conflict) can bring (the team) close

More than 38 percent of over-65s were in relative poverty in 2022 a South Korean government report showed Monday. OECD data shows the country had the highest old-age poverty rate among all member states. The relative poverty rate for South Korea marked a 0.5 percent point increase from 37.6 percent before, according to the report jointly announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and Statistics Korea. OECD defines relative poverty rate refers to the percentage of the population with income

South Korean media on Monday reported that police had apprehended a man in his 60s who allegedly attacked a woman after she refused his sexual advances. The police tracked down the man after receiving his license plate details from the victim, who read out the number from a bathroom window. According to local broadcaster MBN, the suspect met the victim at around 2 p.m. Sunday through a mutual acquaintance. After the two met and had a drink, the victim visited the suspect's home, where the s

The two samoyed dogs that were recently rescued from the middle of an expressway have been returned to their owner, animal rescue authorities said Monday, marking a happy ending to an incident that sparked concerns from animal lovers across the country over the weekend. Dangjin Animal Shelter, which had been looking after the dogs, told The Korea Herald that they were reclaimed by their owner living in Dangjin, Chungcheong Province, on Monday morning. The elderly owner had left her door open by

A South Korean court on Sunday said it has sentenced a 30-something man who had repeatedly assaulted his pregnant girlfriend with a one-year prison term. The defendant, whose identity was withheld by the authorities, has been accused of assaulting his pregnant girlfriend multiple times in Cheongju, 112 kilometers from Seoul, in August 2022, after accusing her of causing him to lose in a video game. He is also accused of hitting the victim in the face multiple times for secretly looking into hi

A recent think tank study showed that the suicide rate in South Korea tends to go up as the employment rate falls with the effect stronger among women and the younger population. The report by the state-run Korea Labor Institute analyzed the data of 16 major cities across the country between 2000 and 2021, comparing the suicide rates with both employment and unemployment rates. They found that suicide rates go down as employment rates go up, and rise proportionally to the unemployment rates. In

A store owner who took down a man on a rampage while wielding a knife is being heralded as a hero here, after reports of the incident made headlines Friday afternoon. According to Gangbuk Police Station, a man in his 50s attempted to start a fire in the streets of Suyu-dong, northern Seoul at around 1:25 p.m. on Friday. When a passerby tried to stop him, he swung a knife and inflicted a minor injury to the victim’s face. Sensing danger, Jo Yu-chan, a local fruit vendor who was near the sus

South Korean court said Sunday it has recently ruled against the compensation for the family of an 88-year-old woman who died shortly after being vaccinated for COVID-19, saying her death could not directly be linked to the vaccination. According to officials, the victim experienced severe chest pain an hour and 30 minutes after receiving the shot on April 23, 2021. She died two hours and 37 minutes after the vaccination. The bereaved family requested financial compensation from the government,

South Korean court said on Sunday it has rejected the request made by a former member of the Air Force to reverse his dismissal, saying the military's decision is justified. The Chuncheon branch of the Seoul High Court upheld the earlier court ruling that ruled in favor of the Air Force dismissing the senior non-commissioned officer, who had the rank of "wonsa" which is roughly equivalent to chief master sergeant in the US Air Force. He was removed from the post in May 2022 after

About 1 in 5 teenagers in South Korea have been subject to online abuse, a recent survey by state-run think-tank found Sunday. The National Youth Policy Institute conducted the study in November on 1,038 teens here, comprising of 508 middle school students, 507 high school students and 23 teens not attending schools. Some 20.1 percent of the respondents said they had been insulted, generally hurt online in the past six months, while 3 percent said they have been subject to cyberbullying over 10

Private education institutes across South Korea have been expanding the number of classes for students preparing for medical school, with some promoting night classes for office workers wishing to become doctors. Mega Study, a major private education institute, held an information session earlier this week about a night class for medical school hopefuls which will open on March 18. According to the institute, the majority of the inquiries were made by those in their early to mid-30s who were gra

The majority of men who have taken parental leave think taking a leave of absence for childcare is still difficult in South Korean society, with their leading concern being parental leave putting them at a disadvantage for promotion, a recent survey by a think-tank indicated. The KCTU Research Center, affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, surveyed 1,720 of its members who took paternity leave at least once to find how they felt about the system. In the survey conducted throug