The number of rail passengers in South Korea shot up 44 percent on-year in the first quarter as the country returned to pre-pandemic normalcy, government data showed. Around 39.2 million people traveled on railways in the January-March period, rising sharply from 27.2 million tallied a year earlier, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. The figure excl...

South Korea's new coronavirus cases dipped below 10,000 on Monday, as the country moved to end almost all COVID-19 restrictions and return to pre-pandemic normalcy. The country reported 7,178 cases, including 16 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,415,280, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Monday's tally was down from 8,164 cases a week ago but was higher than ...

President Yoon Suk Yeol thanked all teachers Monday for their love and dedication to children as he marked Teachers' Day. "On Teachers' Day, I deeply thank you for your love and dedication," he wrote in a Facebook message. "Raising a person is impossible without love. It is thanks to teachers' love and dedication that our children are able to grow brighter and healthier," he added. Yoon is sch...

The ruling People Power Party and the government decided Sunday to ask President Yoon Suk Yeol to veto the opposition-led nursing act amid strong protests from doctors and assistant nurses against it. The two sides made the decision after a high-level policy consultation meeting attended by People Power Party leader Kim Gi-hyeon, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Min...

Alex recalled how the Christmas with the Korean guests began. “We’ve had snowstorms, but not to that extent. … We knew we were going to be stuck at home for many days. So when we heard the knock on our door, we wondered who would be outside in this weather,” he said. At the door were Scott Park and the tour guide asking if they could borrow shovels, but Campagna thought that would have been “li...

Former US vice president warns failure to address climate crisis would increase geopolitical tensions

A coalition of doctors, nursing assistants and other medical professionals is poised to go on a daylong nationwide general strike this week, as the medical sector remains split over the Nursing Act, which was passed in the National Assembly last month, where the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea holds the majority. The coalition of 13 medical associations including the Korea Medical Asso...

Families that communicate in group chat rooms on mobile messaging apps are more likely to have stronger bonds compared to those who don’t, a study showed Sunday. “There is a higher chance that families with group chat rooms feel more satisfaction due to in-depth communication,” according to a report released by the research team led by Sogang University communications professor Cho Jae-hee. “Fa...

South Korean men in the top income bracket are likelier to be tying the knot, data showed Sunday, suggesting that income inequality could be a major factor in exacerbating marriage and childbearing rates. According to data released by the Korea Labor Institute analyzing labor and fertility trends, men with higher economic status were less likely to be unmarried and childless than low-income men....

Five out of 100 South Koreans aged 19-34 are effectively isolated from society, a new study shows. According to the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, the incidence of isolation among youth stood at 5 percent as of 2021. Compared to its previous survey conducted in 2019, before the COVID-19 outbreak, the figure has significantly risen from 3.1 percent. The researchers define "isolat...

TWINS HOMECOMING DAY -- Quadruplets stood side by side, holding hands at the "Twins Plus Homecoming Day" event held at the Seoul National University playground on Saturday. The Seoul National University Medical Research Center invited families with multiple pregnancies, including twins or more, who were delivered at the hospital, and opened a one-day amusement park. Professor Jeon Jong-kwan of th...

South Korea's new coronavirus cases stayed below 20,000 for the second consecutive day on Saturday, as the country moved to end almost all COVID-19 restrictions and return to pre-pandemic normalcy. The country reported 19,352 cases, including 30 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,390,699, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Saturday's tally was down from 19,989 ...

Google chose Korean and Japanese as the first service languages for its artificial intelligence-based chatbot, Bard, to expand its presence to compete with ChatGPT, which is backed by Google’s rival Microsoft. “They're incredibly dynamic and exciting regions, which are at the cutting edge of an opting technology,” said Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Thursday, explaining the reason for launching Bar...

Former Defense Minister Song Young-moo and other high-ranking officials underwent a search and seizure Friday over allegations that Song had committed an abuse of power. He is alleged to have coerced subordinates to lie about his remark on the legitimacy of a hypothetical military crackdown on peaceful protesters demonstrating against former President Park Geun-hye. The Corruption Investigation ...

A 21-year-old man doing his compulsory military service remains unconscious for the sixth day since his suicide attempt on Sunday, which his family claimed was triggered by bullying from his superiors in the military. The victim reportedly attempted to take his own life around 12:15 a.m. at a South Korean Air Force base located in Paju City, Gyeonggi Province, after which he was found by fellow ...