S. Korea goes all-out to eradicate bedbugs as reports surge nationwide

South Korea has launched a pangovernmental initiative to comprehensively combat the proliferation of bedbugs, fueled by a recent surge in reports of bedbug infestations and concerns over the pest spreading nationwide. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has taken the lead in assembling a pangovernmental task force, initiated last Friday, comprising ten relevant ministries and local governments. The objective of this joint effort is to promptly and efficiently stop the spread of bedbugs by mo

Nov. 7, 2023

[Newsmaker] Fugitive captured after 3 days on the lam

After a dayslong search for a fugitive who escaped custody Saturday, police officers on late Monday captured Kim Gil-soo after he was seen at a public phone booth in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, just to the north of Seoul. The 36-year-old escapee was caught at around 9:26 p.m. He was reportedly calling his girlfriend at that moment, according to police. “I didn’t plan it,” the fugitive told local reporters when asked if he had premeditated his escape. He also denied that he ha

Nov. 7, 2023

Seoul offers 10,000 sets of portable SOS emergency bell ‘Zikimi’

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Tuesday that it will distribute a portable SOS emergency bell called “Zikimi” as part of a campaign to relieve citizen’s anxiety caused by a series of violent crimes. Each emergency bell set contains a safety alarm and will be given first to 10,000 victims of crimes such as sexual and domestic violence, as well as stalking. Once the bell is activated, it sends out a warning alert that can call for help around the area and an emergency

Nov. 7, 2023

Marking independence, Poland highlights ties with Gyeonggi Province

Poland highlighted growing ties with Gyeonggi Province in Korea, marking the 105th anniversary of Polish independence on Monday. Poland reappeared on the world map after a 123-year absence and reestablished its independence on Nov. 18, 1918. The country celebrates Independence Day to commemorate the restoration of Poland's sovereignty in 1918. “Losing the statehood does not mean losing the identity — and this is the solid foundation of the power and will for life,” said Po

Nov. 7, 2023

Child hurt after angry dad pushes the swing too hard

A man has been booked for child abuse after security footage showed him pushing a small child on a swing too hard, causing her to fall off, suffering abrasions. The man was her father, apparently angered after a fight with his wife, Channel A reported Monday evening. A neighbor who saw them at a playground of an apartment complex in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, on Oct. 24 reported the incident to the police. In the footage broadcast by the cable network, the toddler is shown sitting on a swing alone. A

Nov. 7, 2023

Cold wave hit S. Korea amid forecast of even chillier morning

A cold wave hit South Korea on Tuesday, bringing temperatures below the freezing point in some regions in the mountainous Gangwon and Gyeonggi provinces amid forecasts that even colder weather is likely to grip the nation Wednesday. Seoul also saw the coldest weather of this fall with 3.8 C, while the morning temperatures dipped below zero in northeastern Gyeonggi Province and the inland and mountainous areas of Gangwon Province, with Mount Seorak recording minus 6.6 C as of 5:58 a.m. The lowest

Nov. 7, 2023

[Graphic News] Number of foreign nationals convicted for drug-related offenses in Korea triples over 4 years

The number of individuals of foreign nationality convicted of drug crimes in South Korea nearly tripled in the past four years, data showed. From 2018 to 2022, the number of foreign nationals convicted of drug-related offenses here reached 6,423 after registering a steady rise each year, according to National Police Agency data released by Rep. Lee Sang-min of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. Since reaching 596 in 2018, the figure rose to 1,072 in 2019, 1,428 in 2020 and 1,606 in 2

Nov. 7, 2023

Fugitive caught 3 days after escape from hospital

A prison fugitive, who had been on the run for three days after escaping during outside hospital treatment, was caught Monday on the northern outskirts of Seoul, police said. Police officers captured Kim Gil-soo at a public phone booth in Uijeongbu, just north of Seoul, at 9:24 p.m. He was calling his girlfriend, according to police. The manhunt began last Saturday when the 36-year-old fugitive, who was detained at the Seoul Detention Center, south of Seoul, on charges of special robbery, ran aw

Nov. 6, 2023

S. Korean family returns home after fleeing Gaza via Egypt

A South Korean family who fled the besieged Gaza Strip via an Egyptian border returned home Monday. The Emirates plane with the family on board landed at Incheon International Airport, the main gateway to the country, west of Seoul, at around 5:05 p.m. The plane made a stopover at Dubai before flying to Seoul. The family of five departed from Cairo late Sunday (local time), where they had taken shelter after evacuating from the war-torn region by crossing the Rafah border last Thursday. The fami

Nov. 6, 2023

Yoon vows to move up completion of GTX commuter rail networks

President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed Monday to move up the completion of the Great Train Express commuter rail networks as he visited a train station in Seoul's suburbs to check progress on a new service line. The GTX networks are set to enter service next year, starting in March with the GTX-A line connecting Suseo Station in Seoul's Gangnam Ward with Dongtan Station in Hwaseong, 45 kilometers south of the capital. The GTX-C line connecting Yangju, 29 km north of Seoul, to Suwon, just south of the cap

Nov. 6, 2023

Visa applications open for additional 12,900 foreign workers

South Korea is issuing an additional 12,900 E-9 visas for nonskilled foreign workers, the Ministry of Labor and Employment announced Monday, in the latest move to address the deepening labor shortage spurred by the country's demographic collapse. The newly issued visas will be distributed across sectors in need: 5,000 in manufacturing, 4,000 in agriculture and 2,500 in the services sector, as outlined in the announcement. Depending on industry demand, the ministry said it plans to add anoth

Nov. 6, 2023

W10m reward offered for information leading to fugitive on the run for third day

In the hunt for a fugitive who escaped custody Saturday during an assisted hospital visit, South Korean authorities have raised the reward money for information leading to his capture to 10 million won ($7,700). According to the wanted poster released by the Justice Ministry, the man on the run is 36-year-old Kim Gil-soo, who is a suspect in the robbery of approximately 740 million won. He is described as a man of strong build, standing 175 centimeters tall and weighing around 83 kilograms. Kim,

Nov. 6, 2023

Cold weather arrives after nationwide rain

Following the rain that fell across the country on Monday, temperatures are expected to drop significantly on Tuesday morning, with some areas likely to see morning temperatures below freezing and the first cold wave alerts. The Korea Meteorological Administration forecast that the morning temperature in Seoul on Tuesday will drop to 3 degrees Celsius, which is 12 C lower than the previous day, marking the coldest weather this fall. In northern Gyeonggi Province and some parts of Gangwon Provinc

Nov. 6, 2023

Man arrested for assaulting woman for having short hair

A man in his 20s has been arrested by police for assaulting a female convenience store clerk for having short hair, according to police officials in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province. According to police, the man allegedly told her that, “Since you have short hair, you must be a feminist. I’m a male chauvinist, and I think feminists deserve to be assaulted.” He proceeded to punch and kick the clerk, who was also in her 20s, causing sprains, ligament injuries and injury to her ea

Nov. 6, 2023

Patients resist plan to exempt doctors from criminal charges for mistakes

A government push to exempt doctors from facing criminal charges for medical errors has been met with resistance from patient and civic groups, who say it is already too difficult for injured patients and their families to seek redress. Korea is struggling to address severe shortages of doctors in vital fields such as pediatrics, obstetrics, and neurosurgery. Doctors argue greater legal protection should be part of any measures to address the issue, saying that fear of punishment is one of the r

Nov. 6, 2023

Breaking silence over drug allegations, G-Dragon appears for questioning

Breaking his silence since rumors began emerging nearly two weeks ago, Kwon Ji-yong, more widely known as G-Dragon of K-pop boy band Big Bang, showed up before police on Monday afternoon for questioning over alleged illegal drug use. The 35-year-old singer and rapper arrived at the Incheon Metropolitan Police building at around 1:20 p.m. to undergo an interrogation and drug test conducted by the drug crime investigation unit. “I have no relation to drug-related crimes. That is why (I came

Nov. 6, 2023

Nationwide reports spark escalating public fears of bedbugs

Fears of bedbugs are spreading nationwide, with some avoiding sitting on public transportation or visiting movie theaters, amid an increasing number of reported cases of bedbug appearances and damage. In South Korea, bedbugs were nearly brought to eradication following sweeping disinfection campaigns in the 1960s and the adoption of the powerful pesticide dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, in the 1970s. The country has, however, recently witnessed a surge in reports of bed

Nov. 6, 2023

S. Korean family fleeing Gaza departs for Seoul via Egypt

A South Korean family, who fled the besieged Gaza Strip to Egypt, left for Seoul earlier this week. The family of five, who had been living in Gaza for more than seven years, safely crossed into Egypt on Thursday via the Rafah border in an evacuation from the war-torn region. They are known to be a South Korean woman, her naturalized husband of Palestinian descent and their three children. Following a three-day stay in Egypt, the family departed Cairo International Airport late Sunday and is set

Nov. 6, 2023

Over 90 pct of cattle vaccinated against lumpy skin disease

More than 90 percent of cattle in South Korea have been vaccinated against lumpy skin disease, the agriculture ministry said Monday, as there have been signs that the spread of the viral disease is letting up. The authorities have inoculated more than 3.11 million out of the country's 4.08 million cows so far to protect them against LSD, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. South Korea reported its first-ever case of LSD on Oct. 20 and has since confirmed 78 cas

Nov. 6, 2023

[Graphic News] Number of delivery workers falls in post-pandemic era: data

The number of delivery workers has fallen this year, following sharp growth in recent years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, while the number of cooks rose to an all-time high with people returning to pre-pandemic normalcy, data showed. The number of delivery workers fell by 24,000 during the January-June period to 426,000, marking the first on-year fall since 2019, according to Statistics Korea. The couriers and messengers industry had a total of 343,000 jobs in 2019, and the figure jumped to 371,00

Nov. 6, 2023