For the first time, the South Korean government is allowing ministers and vice ministers to be directly nominated by the public — with the task of finding a health minister who can normalize government relations with doctors at the center of attention. High-profile names have been put forward, with last year’s bruising standoff over medical school quotas and health care reform still not fully resolved. Among the leading contenders for the health minister position include trauma surgeon and direc

A chef at a well-known Japanese restaurant in Seoul’s Gangnam district is under police investigation on suspicion of raping a female employee, local media reported Friday. According to broadcaster MBC, the chef is accused of sexually assaulting the employee, who was intoxicated at the time, on May 7. Security camera footage shows the woman staggering and collapsing on the street. The chef is then seen holding her by the hand and leading her away. The woman later told police the chef had expresse

A salmonella outbreak initially reported in North Chungcheong Province has spread to Sejong and Buan, North Jeolla Province, according to health authorities on Friday. The total number of group infection cases caused by the consumption of bakery products served in school meals has risen to four, with 208 individuals exhibiting symptoms including diarrhea and vomiting, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The outbreak was first detected after students at two group meal fa

Three separate special prosecutor teams have swung into action simultaneously, targeting allegations against former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, as well as the death of a Marine during Yoon’s administration. The passage and promulgation of the bills, and the nomination and subsequent appointments of special prosecutors was completed in an unusually short time — just eight days. Several bills to set up special probes of Yoon and his wife were passed in the National Assembly before Lee be

The independent counsel appointed to investigate former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived martial law imposition said Friday he will work thoroughly only in line with the "logic of investigation." Cho Eun-suk made the remark in a statement hours after President Lee Jae-myung designated him and two other independent counsels to investigate Yoon's case, corruption allegations involving his wife and the tragic death of a Marine. "I will look meticulously as if I am writing a 'sacho' and fulfill

Operations of the Gyeongui-Jungang Line, a commuter rail service of the Seoul metropolitan area, were suspended or delayed Friday due to a power supply accident, its operator Korail said. The accident occurred at 8:19 a.m., when a ladder truck parked at an apartment complex in the western ward of Seodaemun fell onto the power supply system of the train line between Gajwa Station and Sinchon Station, Korail said. The accident caused disruptions to the operations of some commuter and KTX trains ru

ANSAN, South Korea, June 12 (Yonhap) -- The suspect in the killing of two brothers and stabbing of two others was indicted Thursday on charges of murder and attempted murder, the prosecution said. Cha Cheol-nam, a 56-year-old Chinese national of Korean ethnicity, is accused of killing the brothers of the same Chinese-Korean background in Siheung, just southwest of Seoul, last month. He is also accused of stabbing a convenience store owner and his landlord in separate incidents, causing them seri

Pilot error appears to have been behind a KF-16 fighter jet accident that occurred during air drills in Alaska earlier this week, as the pilots mistakenly tried to take off from the taxiway rather than the runway, the Air Force said Thursday. On Tuesday, the two pilots ejected from the twin-seat fighter after an emergency situation occurred during takeoff from Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks, Alaska, as they attended the US-led multinational Red Flag air exercise. They did not suffer major

Dismantling the outsized power of South Korea’s prosecution has been a decadeslong goal for the country’s liberal bloc. South Korea is the only democracy in the world where prosecutors wield both investigative and indictment powers — a structure critics say renders the institution virtually immune to checks and balances. Calls for reform date back to the early 2000s, under the late liberal President Roh Moo-hyun, and the issue has remained a persistent source of political tension. But despite mu

Yes24 warned Thursday that it would notify users individually if personal data was compromised in the ransomware attack that has shut down its services for four consecutive days. This marks a shift from the company’s earlier stance that no data breach had occurred. The statement, posted on Yes24’s official website and app outage page on Thursday morning, came just one day after South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission launched a formal investigation into the incident. Until now,

A sign at a private swimming pool in Gyeonggi Province is drawing backlash online for appearing to demean low-income individuals. Photos of the sign, titled “Guidelines for using the pool,” began circulating Thursday on online communities and social media platforms. Among the listed rules were: “A pool is not a place to scrub off dead skin,” “Shower with soap before entering the pool,” and “Wear a swim cap.” However, it was the final rule that sparked controversy. “The turbidity of the water aft

Police said Thursday they have apprehended a man accused of posting online threats against a reported wedding of an elder son of President Lee Jae-myung. The 50-something man was detained on charges of public intimidation on Wednesday, according to the Seongbuk Police Station in Seoul. The man is accused of posting a photo of a map of the location believed to be the wedding venue for the son of Lee, along with the wedding date, saying that he could get the plate number of cars during the reporte

Jeju Island is expected to witness the start of this year’s monsoon season on Thursday, with the rain expanding northward until Saturday, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration, Wednesday. Starting early Thursday, rain is expected on Jeju Island due to a stationary front situated south of the region. According to the KMA, the front formed under the influence of Typhoon Utip, the first typhoon of the summer, as it moved northward along the western coast of the Philippines toward sou

A former online fan base of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee has taken down the couple's photo from its main page, just as the special probe the couple was approved Tuesday. "In order to minimize the momentum lost after President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment and to contribute to the victory in the upcoming (People Power Party) conference and the local elections (in 2026), we are expanding from the fan website of president and first lady to a community for the pan-conservative

A tagless payment system is set to be introduced as a pilot program on city buses in Seoul from October, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Wednesday. According to the city government, the tagless payment system will allow passengers to ride city buses without having to tap the card reader with their transportation card. By installing a mobile application provided by T-money and enabling Bluetooth and location services, passengers can keep their smartphones in their pockets or bag