The South Korean government is considering making Aug. 14 an extra public holiday to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the nation's liberation from Japan‘s 1910-45 colonial rule, according to reports quoting multiple officials.The plan on issuing an order to close all public offices and agencies, will be discussed during a weekly Cabinet meeting Tuesday and would be finalized a week after. Private companies will be given the choice to follow suit.President Park Geun-hye is expected to express

A ruling party lawmaker Sunday denied an allegation that he sexually assaulted a 40-year-old woman in Daegu, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, last month.In a telephone interview with Yonhap News Agency, the lawmaker repudiated the claim, saying that he was cleared of the charges and he didn‘t harm the woman.  The woman, whose name was withheld, claimed the Saenuri lawmaker took her clothes off against her will and sexually assaulted her at a hotel. The case was reported to the police by t

The ruling Saenuri Party chairman vowed on Thursday to push for sweeping labor reforms in South Korea to help young job seekers find quality work, while the opposition leader followed with his own labor policy pitch.In a speech delivered at Columbia University in New York, Saenuri Rep. Kim Moo-sung said many young Koreans are frustrated because there are not enough jobs in the market, and his party has been working to loosen the nation’s rigid labor market. Saenuri Party chairman Kim Moo-sung sp

Scud missiles fired into Saudi Arabia by Yemeni rebels in recent months came from North Korea, a South Korean intelligence official said Wednesday, in the latest case that illustrated North Korea's support for the weapons programs of some countries in the Middle East.Saudi Arabia has shot down about 40 percent of some 20 Scud missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels, said the official, who is familiar with the issue.He did not give further details on how South Korea reached the conclusion that th

South Korea will complete a major upgrade on the home-grown dual-barrel K-11 rifle by the end of 2016, the head of the state defense development agency said Wednesday, after the use of the Army assault rifle was suspended last year due to a glitch in the shooting control system."(We) are pushing to improve the K-11 dual-barrel rifle by a large scale before the end of next year in order to turn what has become an ugly duckling into a swan in the shortest time possible,"Jung Hong-yong, president o

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- An Afghan official said Wednesday his government is examining claims that reclusive Taliban leader Mullah Omar is dead. The Taliban could not be immediately reached on the government's comments about Omar, who has been declared dead many times before. Omar, the one-eyed, secretive head of the Taliban and an al-Qaida ally, led a bloody insurgency against U.S.-led forces after they toppled him from his rule in Afghanistan in 2001. Zafar Hashemi, a deputy spokesman for Af

Korea’s top spy agency chief Monday categorically denied allegations the agency used a hacking program to wiretap citizens during the first session of a bipartisan parliamentary committee that aims to probe any wrongdoings by the NIS. 　Lee testified before the National Assembly Intelligence Committee’s closed-door session, saying that the NIS had found no evidence of civilian surveillance following an internal investigation into computer files believed to hold evidence.   　“(The NIS) has never s

The main opposition party reignited a heated political debate Monday by suggesting as part of its electoral reform plan to raise the number of lawmakers from the general elections next year. The proposal prompted different reactions and interpretations from main and minor parties, cautiously tiptoeing around a potential rise in the number of parliamentary seats and the negative public opinion over lawmakers’ prerogatives.Kim Sang-kon, head of the reform committee of the New Politics Alliance for

The main opposition party on Wednesday appointed software mogul-turned-politician and former presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo to lead its own investigation into alleged wiretapping of citizens by the nation’s spy agency.Ahn, founder of antivirus software company AhnLab, accepted a request by New Politics Alliance for Democracy chairman Moon Jae-in to form an interparty committee to probe the fresh allegation against the National Intelligence Service, the party said. The committee will consis

President Park Geun-hye on Monday indicated she would grant special pardons next month to mark the 70th anniversary of Korea’s independence from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule."The people are struggling with their lives now, and I believe that special pardons are needed to be carried out to mark the 70th anniversary of Liberation Day as well as to achieve the national growth and forge national reconciliation,” she said at a meeting with her senior secretaries. President Park Geun-hye (Yonhap)The

President Park Geun-hye’s new top political aide faces the daunting challenges of restoring the frozen relationship between her and her party and putting her reform drive back on track by normalizing communication with the parliament.Hyun Ki-hwan, a former Saenuri lawmaker and one of the Park’s faithful retainers, was named as the new senior presidential secretary for political affairs Friday. Though his parliamentary career has been relatively short, Park appointing the one-term lawmaker as her

Senior South Korean and Japanese diplomats had talks here Wednesday on Tokyo's push for the listing of its early industrial locales, some associated with its wartime use of forced labor, as world heritage.Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun met with his Japanese counterpart Shinsuke Sugiyama, according to the Foreign Ministry.The meeting came as the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO will soon make its decision on Japan's bid to have the 23 coal mines, ship yards and other facilities registere

At least 10 South Korean government officials who were on an overseas trip to China were killed on Wednesday afternoon as a bus that carried them fell off a bridge in Jian, in the northeastern province of Jilin, an official said.The bus, headed to the Chinese border town of Dandong, was carrying about 25 South Korean officials and a travel guide.The accident took place around 2 p.m., said the official at the South Korean Consulate in the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang. A picture posted on

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday visited a primary school in southern Seoul, which has reopened following the weeklong shutdown over the deadly MERS virus.The visit is the latest in a series of public activities designed to allay public fears about the spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome that has killed 19 South Koreans.The school had been closed for seven days last week as a precautionary measure against the virus. The school is located near Samsung Medical Center, which has been a maj

South Korean footballer Cha Du-ri bid a teary farewell to international football on Tuesday, wrapping up a 14-year career that included appearances at two FIFA World Cups.Cha, 34, played in his 76th and final match for South Korea against New Zealand at Seoul World Cup Stadium. The right fullback served as the team captain and stayed on for 42 minutes before leaving the field to a rousing standing ovation from thousands of fans. New Zealand players also applauded Cha on his way to the bench.Cha'

A South Korean sexual minority group said Tuesday the nation's communications watchdog shouldn't try to ban a local TV series showing the first on-screen lesbian kiss in South Korea.Earlier this month, the Korea Communications Standard Commission (KCSC) said it would evaluate whether "Seonam Girls High School Investigators" is appropriate for broadcast.The show, which started in December on cable channel JTBC, featured two lesbian love scenes between this month and last. KCSC said there have bee

South Korea on Tuesday clinched a spot in the regional Olympic qualifying tournament scheduled for next year.South Korea, coached by Shin Tae-yong defeated Indonesia 4-0 in Jakarta in the preliminaries for next year's AFC U-23 Championship.South Korea had earlier defeated Brunei and Timor-Leste, and thanks to posting the best record among the four countries, South Korea qualified for the U-23 Championship, which will double as the Asian qualification tournament for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Ri

Another three South Koreans were evacuated from Yemen by plane on Tuesday as security concerns have heightened following airstrikes against a militant rebel group there, Seoul's foreign ministry said.The foreign ministry said that the three Korean residents in Yemen's capital Sanaa departed for Ethiopia on a U.N. plane earlier in the day following the evacuation of 10 Koreans made on Saturday.Two diplomats will be re-located to an interim diplomatic mission to be placed on a South Korean Navy de

China is awaiting decisions by South Korea, Japan and Australia on whether to join a new Chinese-led Asian infrastructure bank as founding members, China's foreign ministry said Friday. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has recently gained traction as major Western economies, including Britain, Germany and France, decided to join the Chinese-led bank. Close U.S. allies in Asia -- South Korea, Australia and Japan -- have yet to make their decisions. The end of March is the deadline

A Korean teenager who went missing in Turkey last month is training to become a member of the Islamic State militant group, the National Intelligence Service said Tuesday. The 18-year-old tourist from Seoul, surnamed Kim, vanished on Jan. 10 after leaving a hotel in the border town of Kilis. He initially arrived in Istanbul on Jan. 8 and flew to the southern city of Gaziantep before reaching Kilis by car the next day, a typical route locals say is taken by aspiring IS jihadists.  In this June 23