South Korea

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South Korea's Wildfires Are 'Rewriting the Record Books'

24 people have been killed in fires that began Friday

(Newser) - Wildfires are infrequent in South Korea—but the ones burning there now in the country's southern regions have been labeled the deadliest ever. The fires, which CNN reports began last Friday from a spark from a lawn mower, have destroyed an ancient temple and prompted the evacuation of tens...

Sinkhole Appears in an Instant, Swallows Motorcyclist

The incident in Seoul was captured by dashcam video

(Newser) - A 65-foot-wide sinkhole that abruptly swallowed a motorcyclist on a Seoul street on Monday evening did so fatally, South Korean officials say. A motorcyclist in his 30s was found dead in the sinkhole midday Tuesday, per Gangdong fire station chief Kim Chang Seob, who said the man was discovered still...

S. Korea's Acting President Reinstated by High Court

Constitutional Court overturns impeachment of Han Duck-soo

(Newser) - South Korea's Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, reinstating the nation's No. 2 official as acting leader Monday while not yet ruling on the separate impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol over his shocking imposition of martial law late last year. Many observers said...

Brands Flee South Korean Star Accused of Dating Minor

Kim Soo-hyun's one-time girlfriend, Kim Sae-ron, died last month in a suspected suicide

(Newser) - Italian luxury brand Prada is among companies ditching popular South Korea actor Kim Soo-hyun after allegations that he was romantically involved with another actor when she was 15. Kim Sae-ron, 24, was found dead of a suspected suicide in February, three years after a "fall from grace," per...

South Korean Star Dies at 43
South Korean
Star Dies at 43
Mar 11, 2025 11:17 AM CDT

South Korean Star Dies at 43

Wheesung's death is 'the latest in a string of tragedies' in the country's entertainment industry

(Newser) - Yet another South Korean star has died, in what the New York Times calls "the latest in a string of tragedies to strike the country's booming entertainment industry." Wheesung, who put R&B on the map in South Korea over the course of a career that spanned...

South Korea Releases Impeached President

Court allows Yoon Suk Yeol to be free during rebellion trial

(Newser) - South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol was released from prison on Saturday, a day after a Seoul court canceled his arrest to allow him to stand trial for rebellion without being detained. After walking out of a detention center near Seoul, Yoon waved, clenched his fists, and bowed...

South Korean Fighter Jet Accidentally Drops Bombs

8 people were injured in the incident

(Newser) - A South Korean fighter jet accidentally dropped eight bombs on a civilian area during training on Thursday, injuring eight people, officials said. The MK-82 bombs "abnormally" released by the KF-16 fighter jet fell outside a firing range, causing civilian damages, the air force said in a statement. The air...

Woman in Hot Water Over Kiss of K-Pop Star

S. Korean cops summon 50-something woman for questioning after smooch of BTS member

(Newser) - A kiss is not just a kiss in South Korea—especially if you try to smooch a member of BTS. NBC News reports that police there have summoned a woman accused of planting one on 32-year-old Kim Seok-jin, better known as the K-pop group's Jin, without his consent, with...

'Through Her Life, We Have Seen What Human Dignity Is'

Gil Won-ok, an advocate for so-called comfort women, dies at 96

(Newser) - Tens of thousands of Korean women were forced into sexual slavery by Japan during WWII. In the 1990s, about 240 of these so-called "comfort women" publicly identified themselves. Seven of them are still alive—and until her Sunday death, Gil Won-ok had been number eight. "Through her life,...

Teacher Allegedly Kills 8-Year-Old at School

Depressed female teacher was reportedly forced back to work in South Korea

(Newser) - An elementary school student in South Korea has died after she was allegedly stabbed by a teacher in an attempted murder-suicide. The unnamed female teacher, who also had stab wounds that police say may have been self-inflicted, was found beside the female student on the second floor of the Daejeon...

North Korea Sees US Act as 'Undeniable Threat'

Docking of USS Alexandria in South Korea ruffles feathers

(Newser) - A US Navy submarine docked at a naval base in South Korea on Monday, purportedly to replenish supplies—drawing a strong reaction from North Korea, which labeled the act an "undeniable threat." "We express grave concern over the US dangerous hostile military act," a Defense Ministry...

Prosecutors Indict South Korea's President
South Korea Indicts President
Jan 26, 2025 11:30 AM CST

South Korea Indicts President

A trial over martial law declaration is next for Yoon Suk Yeol

(Newser) - South Korean prosecutors on Sunday indicted impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on rebellion in connection with his short-lived imposition of martial law, a criminal charge that could incur the death penalty or life imprisonment if he's convicted. Yoon was impeached and arrested over his Dec. 3 martial law decree...

Marriage, Babies Finally on the Rise in South Korea

Birth rate to climb in 9-year first

(Newser) - South Koreans are finally getting around to making more babies, which is of great news to their government. South's Korea's birth rate—for years the lowest of any country in the world—is now set to climb for the first time in almost a decade. The number of...

South Korea Enacts a Change After Jeju Air Crash

Concrete barriers that hold localizers will be buried or replaced

(Newser) - The deadliest plane crash in South Korea's history is triggering a change at the country's airports. The BBC reports the concrete barriers that contain navigation systems at seven airports will be altered in the wake of the crash, which saw a Jeju Air flight slam into a concrete...

Thousands Rally at Court for President's Release
South Korea Arrests
Impeached President
updated
Jan 18, 2025 1:50 PM CST

South Korea Arrests Impeached President

Thousands rallied outside Seoul court for release of Yoon Suk Yeol

(Newser) - South Korea's impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was formally arrested early Sunday after a court found he was a threat to destroy evidence. The Seoul Western District Court deliberated for hours before granting law enforcement's request for an arrest warrant, the AP reports. Yoon, who appeared before the...

They Cut Barbed Wire, Scaled Walls to Arrest a President

President Yoon Suk Yeol's residence has been called a 'fortress' by some

(Newser) - An effort to arrest South Korea's president on Jan. 3 failed . A second attempt on Wednesday succeeded —with the help of what the BBC reports was a 1,000-person-strong arrest team. Impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol is under criminal investigation for insurrection after declaring martial law on Dec....

South Korea's Impeached President Is Detained

Second attempt to take Yoon Suk Yeol into custody is successful

(Newser) - South Korean law enforcement officials on Wednesday detained impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his brief imposition of martial law last month, the AP reports. In a video message recorded before he was escorted to the headquarters of an anti-corruption agency, Yoon lamented that the "rule of law has...

In Adoptions Out of Korea, a 'Huge Tree of Deception'

AP looks at disturbing fraud allegations tied to a 'baby pipeline' out of the South

(Newser) - Her greatest fear, dormant for decades, came rushing back in an instant: Had she adopted and raised a kidnapped child? Peg Reif's daughter, adopted from South Korea in the 1980s, had sent her a link to a documentary detailing how the system that made their family was rife with...

'Human Wall' Blocks Arrest of South Korea's President

Corruption Investigation Office suspends efforts to arrest Yoon Suk Yeol over safety concerns

(Newser) - South Korean investigators suspended efforts to arrest impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday after an hours-long standoff that saw 200 soldiers and members of the Presidential Security Service form a "human wall" to protect Yoon, per CNN . Some 80 police officers and investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office...

Supporters Try to Keep Officers From Impeached President

South Korea's anti-corruption agency sends investigators to Yoon Suk Yeol's residence

(Newser) - South Korean investigators on Friday were attempting to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived martial law decree last month, as hundreds of his supporters gathered at his residence in Seoul, vowing to block their approach. About 20 investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials and...

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