A group of South Korean scholars gathered Friday to address Japan's growing claims to Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo.In a symposium held at the Seoul Museum of History, experts from across the country held presentations and a debate on ways to counter Japan's claims. Historical records show that Dokdo has long been a part of Korea, but Japan has claimed it as its own since its 1910-45 colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula.Professor Song Hwi-young of the Dokdo Institute at Yeungnam Univers

South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Friday expressed her "deep" condolences to Thailand over the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, saying his leadership for the Southeast Asian country's harmony will always be remembered. The king, the world's longest-reigning monarch, died peacefully at a hospital in the Thai capital of Bangkok on Thursday, according to a statement from the country's royal household bureau. He was 88. Since he took the throne in 1946 at age 18, he had been revered as a rare

South Korea's military chief stressed the need to strengthen the country's missile defense capabilities to counter North Korea's missile threats before a US anti-missile system is to be deployed on the Korean Peninsula, Seoul's military said Friday.Gen. Lee Sun-jin, chairman of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, made the remarks during Seoul and Washington's Military Committee Meeting held in Washington on Thursday with his counterpart, Gen. Joseph Dunford, it said."The generals agreed to cont

Job positions related to customer service can affect workers' psychology and even lead to sleep disorders, a survey showed Friday.According to the survey of 13,066 paid workers aged between 20 and 65, those working at customer service job positions complain of sleep problems. The workers who frequently have to deal with angry customers are six times more likely to suffer sleeping disorders than normal people, according to the survey.The survey was conducted by a team led by Yoon Jin-ha of Yonsei

A local professor was sentenced to 16 months in prison Friday on charges of manipulating a report in favor of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser over the high-profile toxic humidifier disinfectant case.The Seoul Central District Court found the professor at Hoseo University in Asan, some 100 kilometers south of Seoul, guilty of writing the report in return for money between October 2011 and September 2012.The court ordered the professor, identified only by his surname Yoo, to forfeit 24 million won ($21,200)

The National Assembly's regular audit virtually ended Friday, with political watchers pointing out that the lawmakers failed to come up with constructive results due to a series of boycotts and partisan quarrels.The regular audit, which kicked off on Sept. 26, started amid the absence of the ruling Saenuri Party, which had refused to take part in proceedings on the controversy over the neutrality of the parliamentary speaker.Saenuri said Speaker Chung Sye-kyun unfairly took sides in the passage

철봉 위를 날아다니는 한 여성의 영상이 지난 7일 ‘익스트림 피트니스 라이프스타일’ 페이스북 페이지에 공유됐다.　(사진=페이스북)　영상 마지막에 여성은 철봉을 박차고 공중제비를 돌아 착지하기까지 기막힌 묘기를 선보였다. 　 　(khnews@heraldcorp.com)　

상대를 가리지 않고 끊임없이 막말을 해대고 기행을 일삼는 가운데 '마약과의 유혈전쟁' 논란을 일으켜온 로드리고 두테르테 필리핀 대통령의 지지율이 고공행진을 이어가고 있다.14일 필리핀스타 등 현지 언론에 따르면 두테르테 대통령은 현지 여론조사업체 펄스아시아가 9월 25일부터 10월 1일까지 필리핀 성인 남녀 1천200명을 대상으로 한 여론조사에서 86%의 신뢰율을 기록했다. (사진=유튜브)이는 취임 직후인 지난 7월 여론조사의 91% 지지율보다는 다소 낮지만 여전히 높은 수치다.지역별로 볼 때 수도 마닐라 시민의 신뢰율이 92%에서 81%로 비교적 크게 떨어졌으나, 다른 지역의 변화는 크지 않다.펄스아시아는 "필리핀 국민 대다수가 대통령 업무수행에 만족하고 신뢰한다는 반응을 보였다"고 말했다.미국 일간 뉴욕타임스(NYT)는 마약에 중독된 가족이 마약 소탕전의 희생자가 될 수 있음에도 두테르테 대통령을 열렬히 지지하는 50대 현지 남성의 사례를 소개하면서, 대통령의 막말과 극단적 정책

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., South Korea's top power equipment maker, said Friday it has secured a $850 million order to build a power plant in the Philippines.Under the deal with Redondo Peninsular Energy Corp., Doosan Heavy will build the coal-powered plant in a region, 130 kilometers northwest of Manila, by December 2020.The deal follows a 1 trillion-won ($884 million) contract to build a power plant in Saudi Arabia.Stocks of Doosan Heavy were trading at 26,850 won on the Seoul

Belarus has frozen a local bank account found to have violated the sanctions imposed under a resolution that the UN Security Council adopted in the wake of North Korea's nuclear test earlier this year, a foreign media report said Friday.This marked the first move of its kind confirmed after the Resolution 2270 was adopted in March, according to the Voice of America.The report quoted a foreign ministry spokesman of Belarus as saying that one of its banks suspended an account and has barred it fro

North Korea has arrested about 20 land ministry officials to hold them accountable for extensive damage caused by floods that ravaged the northeastern part of the country, an activist claimed Friday.Security agents have arrested scores of officials stationed in North Hamgyong Province, which was recently hit hard by heavy rains in late August, according to North Korean defector Kim Yong-hwa, head of the NK Refugees Human Rights Associations of Korea.The North Korean regime views devastating land

Part of cash-strapped Hanjin Shipping Co.'s assets went up for sale on Friday as the company is struggling to raise the cash needed to repay debts and unpaid bills, industry sources said.The country's No. 1 shipper currently under receivership got a nod from a local court Thursday to sell its Asia-US route, including manpower, and vessels, 10 overseas operations, according to the sources.The Seoul Central District Court will receive letters of interest from potential buyers by Oct. 28. Potential

South Korea's large businesses have continued to increase their direct investments in overseas tax havens, adding to concerns about possible tax evasion attempts, a lawmaker said Friday.Conglomerates here remitted a total of 441.5 trillion won to such countries as Bermuda, the Cayman Islands and Panama between 2011 and 2015, according to Rep. Park Kwang-on of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea.The amount is based on the won-dollar exchange rate at the end of 2015. On Thursday morning, the

South Korea had 2.2 doctors per every 1,000 people in 2014, the lowest among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, data showed Friday.According to the OECD data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to the National Assembly, South Korea scored the lowest in physician density, along with Mexico, among 28 member states in 2014, far below the OECD average of 3.3. The data included licensed physicians practicing oriental medicine.Austria ranked top with 5.1

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Friday urged the civil rights commission and other legal bodies to come up with clear and well-defined guidelines on the anti-graft law which went into effect last month amid confusion over interpretation."As we are at the early stage, and as around 4 million people are affected by the law, it is natural that some confusion exists," Hwang said during a government meeting to discuss the anti-graft law."There are controversies about whether a certain action violates

Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday that the discontinuation of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone is expected to dent the company's operating profit by additional $3.1 billion over the next two quarters. Samsung already slashed its estimate for third-quarter operating profit by 2.6 trillion won ($2.3 billion), saying the revision in third-quarter earnings guidance reflected "the direct cost from the discontinuation of the Galaxy Note 7 sales."The latest projection for another mid-3 trillion-won (abou

Nearly two-thirds of textbooks used by international schools in South Korea solely use the name "Sea of Japan" to describe the East Sea, research showed Friday, triggering calls to get local authorities to take action. According to the research conducted by the Ministry of Education, 24 of 33 related textbooks used at international schools solely used the name "Sea of Japan," while the nine others used both terms.Ten schools adopted textbooks that stipulate both names, while 16 others used those

일본에서 난감한(?) 핸드폰 홀더 발명품이 나왔다.　　지난 11일 사회공유망서비스(SNS) 페이스북에 게재된 한 영상은 일본의 애니맥스 (Animax) 회사가 개발한 신종 폰 홀더를 보였다.　　‘백조 목 홀더’라는 이름의 이 발명품은 허리띠처럼 착용할 수 있다. 　　기다란 백조 목은 위로 뻗어올라 얼굴 앞 언저리에 부리를 연 채 놓이게 된다. 　(사진=페이스북)　이 부리 안에 핸드폰을 고정시키면 언제 어디서나 손은 자유롭게 움직이며 핸드폰을 볼 수 있다는 설명이다. 　　‘약 빨고 만든’ 것 같은 홍보 영상에선 이 제품이 저녁식사 자리, 회사, 체육관, 잠자리 등 언제 어디서나 사용 가능하다고 말한다. 　　백조 머리가 예쁘고 신기해서 말을 거는 여성들이 늘어날 것이라는 설명도 있다.　　(khnews@heraldcorp.com)

수영장에 출몰한 한 쌍의 남녀 영상이 사회공유망서비스(SNS)에서 화제가 되고 있다. 　　영상에선 한 금발의 미녀가 건장한 남성에게 안겨 수영장에 등장한다. 　 　이후 반전이 따른다. 이 미녀는 자신을 안고 온 남성을 반대로 들쳐 업어 시청자를 깜짝 놀라게 한다. 　 (사진=페이스북)　하지만 이에 그치지 않고 남성을 업은 채 다리를 절반 굽혔다가 다시 원위치로 일어서는 스쿼트 동작을 하는 것이다. 　　열두 차례 스쿼트를 하고 남성을 다시 내려놓은 여성은 카메라를 향해 승리의 V자 표시를 하는 둥 여유로운 모습을 보였다.　　(khnews@heraldcorp.com)　

The top US official on East Asia has warned North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could face death if he attempts to use nuclear weapons, stressing the nuclear program undermines his security rather than strengthening it."Put yourself in Kim Jong-un's place. That is not a good place to be. Perhaps he's got an enhanced capacity to conduct a nuclear attack and then immediately die. But that can't be plan A," Russel said during a meeting Wednesday with US defense reporters, according to an AP report.Russ