미국의 영향력 있는 단체인 ‘동물의 윤리적 처우를 지지하는 사람들’(PETA)은 16일 성명을 통해 청와대 관저에 9마리의 진돗개를 버리고 간 박근혜 대통령을 비판했다.　이 단체는 “음식, 물, 쉼터, 치료 등 인간에게 의존해야만 하는 개나 다른 동물들에게는 버려진다는 것은 무섭고, 혼란스러우며, 위험한 일”이라며 한국정부에 이 개들을 위한 즉각적인 보호를 요청했다. (청와대 제공)PETA 국제캠페인 아시아 지부 부사장은 “생존에 있어 인간에게 의존할 수 밖에 없는 동물들을 버리는 행위에 어떠한 변명도 있을 수 없다”고 밝혔다. 　지난 12일 오후 박근혜 전 대통령은 파면선고 이후 이틀만에 삼성동 사저로 거처를 옮기는 과정에서 진돗개 9마리를 놔두고 떠나 논란에 휩싸였다. 　부산지역에 있는 한 동물보호단체는 “13일 오후 1시께 ‘박 전 대통령의 동물보호법 위반 행위를 처벌해 달라고 국민신문고에 고발했다”고 밝혔다. 　앞서 청와대는 “공고를 내는 등 적절한 분양 방법을 찾고 있다.

Tens of thousands of South Koreans took to the streets in central Seoul to protest for and against President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment on Saturday, with the ruling on Park’s fate expected in early March. 　The rival rallies have heated up and the rhetoric has become fierce in recent weeks, with only days to go until the independent counsel looking into the scandal ends its term and the Constitutional Court holds the last hearing of the impeachment trial. Protesters hold signs reading "Impeachme

Samsung Group’s heir apparent Lee Jae-yong was arrested with physical detention early Friday morning on charges that include bribery to President Park Geun-hye and her friend Choi Soon-sil. The arrest of Samsung Electronics vice chairman came shortly after a court issued a warrant in the second attempt by the special counsel to arrest him.  　Lee Jae-yong (Yonhap)“It is acknowledged that there is a need and reason for the arrest, given a newly added criminal charges and additional evidence," the

New Pentagon chief James Mattis said Wednesday that NATO was a "fundamental bedrock" for the United States as he  tried to reassure allies concerned about President Donald Trump's commitment."The alliance remains a fundamental bedrock for the United States and for all the transatlantic community, bonded as we are together," Mattis said as he met his counterparts in Brussels for the first time."And as president Trump has stated, he has strong support for NATO," added  the former marine general, w

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday denied reports of intercepted phone calls between Russian intelligence officials and members of Donald Trump's presidential campaign.The New York Times said that the Russians made contact with Paul Manafort, who briefly served as Trump's campaign chairman. Current and former U.S. officials interviewed by the Times declined to identify other Trump associates contacted by the Russians.Speaking to reporters in Moscow, Peskov, spokesman for President Vlad

If North Korean agents are responsible for the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korea's leader, it would be the latest in a long line of targeted killings by the isolated state.Kim, whose younger brother Kim Jong-un has ruled North Korea since the death of their father in December 2011, died after reportedly being poisoned by two female agents at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Monday.Here are some other fatal attacks carried out by North Korea on foreign

Most schools across the nation appeared Wednesday to have rejected a set of controversial state-authored history textbooks advocated by impeached President Park Geun-hye.The textbooks for middle and high school students were unveiled by the government last month to correct what it said was a left-leaning, pro-North Korea bias in existing history textbooks made by private publishers.This image taken from Yonhap News TV shows three state-authored history textbooks. (Yonhap)Liberals denounced the n

Malaysian police on Thursday arrested another female suspect in connection with the killing of the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a police statement showed.The woman police detained is Siti Aishah, a 25-year-old who was holding an Indonesian passport, a Malaysian police statement showed. The latest arrest comes as the Southeast Asian nation moves to get to the bottom of Kim Jong-nam's death.(Yonhap)The first suspect was caught at the airport -- a 29-year-old woman with Vietname

The murdered half brother of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un seems to have shown his support for victims of the terrorist attacks in France in November 2015, according to a profile image on a Facebook account presumed to be his on Wednesday. (Facebook)On the Facebook account opened under the name of Kim Chol, the most recently created profile photo visible to the public is an image of an animal uploaded on Nov. 16, 2015. The photo was run through a filter that overlaid the colors of France's na

The assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother reflects the young dictator’s “monomaniacal” character, a lawmaker from the parliament’s national intelligence committee said Wednesday.“It seems like the timing of the assassination has no meaning. It is rather a reflection of Kim Jong-un’s monomaniacal side than a calculated move to remove a threat to his regime,” Rep. Kim Byung-kee of the Democratic Party of Korea told reporters after a closed-door session with the nation’s s

US Defense Secretary James Mattis said Friday that the United States stands "100 percent" with Japan on a visit to reassure Asian allies rattled by President Donald Trump's isolationist rhetoric.Mattis spoke in Tokyo on the first overseas tour by a senior Trump administration official, as concerns rise about the direction of US policy in the region under the protectionist and fiery leader.He arrived earlier in the day from Seoul, where he warned nuclear-armed North Korea that any attacks by thei

A French soldier patrolling at the Louvre  museum in Paris shot and seriously injured a machete-wielding man on Friday who yelled "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest") as he attacked security forces, police said.Hundreds of tourists were confined to secure areas of the world-famous art gallery in central Paris after the attacker was shot five times around 10:00 (1100 GMT) in a public area inside the complex.Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve called the attack "terrorist in nature."One soldier was "li

The government said Friday that it will strengthen punishments for people causing violence or a disturbance during a flight, following a recent in-flight incident.Under revised airline safety regulations, a passenger resorting to violence during the flight will be sentenced to up to three years in prison, officials said.   The revision was discussed during a government meeting presided over by Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn. Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn (Y

A team of surgeons reported Friday that they have completed a hand transplant on a man in his 30s, marking the first time that a surgery replacing a hand has taken place in South Korea.The 25-strong team, led by W Hospital chief Woo Sang-hyun, transplanted the hand of a man in his 40s who had been pronounced brain dead. The procedure took 10 hours starting at 4:00 p.m. the previous day at the Yeungnam University Medical Center in the southeastern city of Daegu.The body part being transplanted wa

Impeached President Park Geun-hye added another lawyer to her legal team Friday in what appears to be a bid to strengthen her defense at the Constitutional Court.Wie Jae-min, a former prosecutor, was appointed to join the team, a court official said, bringing the total number of attorneys to 14. His appointment came just three days after the addition of another former prosecutor to the team. Parliament has 16 lawyers on its impeachment panel to serve as the prosecution. (Yonhap)Park was impeache

A South Korean court Thursday rejected an arrest warrant for Samsung Group’s heir apparent Lee Jae-yong over a corruption scandal that led to President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment. 　 "It is hard to acknowledge the reason, necessity and appropriateness for the arrest at the current stage (of the investigation)" the Seoul Central District Court said, citing lack of evidence and key issues that are still debated as the reasons for the rejection. 　Following the court's decision, the 48-year-old tyco

Samsung Group’s de facto leader Lee Jae-yong is possibly at the lowest point of his life as he nervously waits for a court’s decision on his arrest warrant. 　The heir apparent of the nation’s largest conglomerate has been placed behind bars until the court decides on his and his company’s fate, most likely by early Thursday morning. 　Lee Jae-yong (Yonhap)But his brief stay at a detention facility in south of Seoul might be a taste of what is yet to come, as he faces charges --- bribery, embezzle

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump wanted to praise his daughter on Twitter -- instead he accidentally sent his message to another Ivanka. Trump retweeted a message from a Twitter user that said his daughter was "great, a woman with real character and class."  But the user tagged the wrong Ivanka, a mistake repeated by Trump -- and the message was directed to a woman named Ivanka Majic in Brighton, southern England.The tweet quickly gained attention, with thousands of retweets and favorites overn

Chinese President Xi Jinping  presented himself as a champion of globalisation Tuesday, lecturing the world  elite in Davos on the dangers of protectionism and the futility of trade wars.The leader of the world's second largest economy became the first Chinese president to address the World Economic Forum, where 3,000 well-heeled delegates from government, business, science and the arts have gathered.His appearance comes as populist protectionism is on the rise across Europe and in the US, where

Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday said Britain will leave the EU's single market in order to restrict immigration in a clean break from the bloc, but lawmakers can vote on the final deal."Brexit must mean control of the number of people coming from Europe, and that is what we will deliver. What I am proposing cannot mean membership of the single market," May said during a highly-anticipated speech at London's Lancaster House.She added that Britain would seek a trade deal giving "the greatest