TOKYO (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's aunt is staying in Europe following the execution of her husband, Jang Song-thaek, a news report said Thursday.Kim Kyong-hui, a senior party secretary and sister of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, stayed in Switzerland after the North executed Jang in December on charges of treason, Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun reported, citing unidentified sources.The newspaper also said it obtained information that she later moved to Poland where Kim Pyong-i

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Yonhap) – Lethargic and sloppy at both ends, South Korea lost to Mexico 4-0 in a tune-up football match in Texas ahead of this summer's World Cup.Forward Alan Pulido scored a hat trick and Oribe Peralta added another for Mexico's comfortable victory at Alamo Dome. It was the worst defeat South Korea has suffered in 12 matches since head coach Hong Myung-bo came on board last summer. This was the second of three friendly matches for South Korea in the United States. Last Satur

TORONTO (AP) – Justin Bieber was charged Wednesday with assault for allegedly hitting a Toronto limousine driver several times in the back of the head last month, just hours after his attorney entered a separate not guilty plea in Florida to drunken-driving and other charges.Bieber turned himself in to a Toronto police station, arriving amid a crush of media and screaming fans.  He was charged with one count of assault and is scheduled to appear in court in Toronto on March 10.Police allege Bieb

North Korea showed no signs of unusual military movements on Thursday as it continued its winter military drills, a South Korean military official said."Any unusual movements have not been spotted," the official said.The drills come after the North proposed that the rival Koreas halt "all acts of provoking and slandering" from Jan. 30, a day before the Lunar New Year's Day, a major holiday celebrated by both Koreas.The North has temporarily stopped sending propaganda leaflets through the western

HONG KONG (AFP) - Asian markets slumped Thursday, extending a global rout on renewed fears about emerging economies after the U.S. Federal Reserve pressed ahead with its stimulus reduction and central banks in Turkey and South Africa jacked up interest rates.The dollar and euro sank against the yen as dealers scurried into safer investments after the Fed decision, while Asian sentiment took a further blow from data showing Chinese manufacturing contracted in January.Tokyo dived 3.33 percent by t

BEIJING (AFP) - Chinese manufacturing contracted for the first time in six months in January, HSBC confirmed Thursday, raising questions over growth prospects for the world's second-largest economy this year.The British banking giant's final reading of China's purchasing managers' index (PMI), which tracks manufacturing activity in factories and workshops, fell to 49.5 this month.It was its lowest figure since July and fractionally below the preliminary 49.6 HSBC announced last week.The index is

South Korea's oil consumption fell for the first time in five years in 2013 as the country used more electricity and city gas to meet its heating and miscellaneous energy needs, data showed Thursday.According to numbers provided by the Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC), petroleum product consumption reached around 826.84 million barrels last year, a 0.1 percent dip from the tally taken for 2012.The KNOC said the last time oil product consumption contracted was in 2008 as the global financial crisi

South Korea said Thursday it plans to donate a sculpture to the Peace Palace in the Netherlands by the end of this year, a move Seoul hopes will help forge cooperative ties with the International Court of Justice.The Palace, located in The Hague, is home to the International Court of Justice, U.N.'s main judicial body, as well as the Permanent Court of Arbitration.South Korea's Foreign Ministry said it has completed consultations with the Carnegie Foundation, which owns the Palace, on the issue.

KINSHASA (AFP) - A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in DR Congo's Katanga province, where rebel violence has destroyed 600 homes over the past three months and displaced 400,000 people, the UN said Wednesday.The head of the world body's MONUSCO mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo admitted that the huge southeastern province had been neglected in recent months."It's a humanitarian catastrophe," Martin Kobler told reporters in Kinshasa, referring to the situation in Katanga, where vio

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama appears to have prevailed, for now, in a campaign to stop Congress from passing new sanctions on Iran he fears could derail nuclear diplomacy.Several Democratic senators who previously backed a bipartisan sanctions bill publicly stepped back after Obama threatened a veto during his State of the Union address on Tuesday.Several sources familiar with behind-the-scenes maneuvering on the bill say a number of other Democratic senators signed up for more sanc

WASHINGTON (AFP) - North Korea appears to be expanding its main launch site to permit more advanced missiles which may eventually be able to reach the United States, a think tank said Wednesday.Analyzing satellite images of the Sohae launch site over the past two months, Johns Hopkins University's US-Korea Institute said North Korea apparently tested a rocket engine needed for its road-mobile KN-08 intercontinental ballistic missile.The evidence indicates that North Korea may be preparing "for a

SEOUL/SEJONG (Yonhap) – The move by the U.S. Federal Reserve to further reduce its monthly bond purchases by $10 billion will have little impact on South Korea's economy, the government said Thursday.An official at the finance ministry said the extent of stimulus cut announced overnight by the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) had been anticipated for some time, and judging by present circumstances, it should not pose new challenges for the economy.Seoul expects Asia's fourth largest econom

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - China and Japan accused each other of threatening stability Wednesday as a diplomatic battle over Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to a contested war shrine reached the UN Security Council.China's UN ambassador, Liu Jieyi, seized upon a debate on the lessons of conflict to slam Abe for going to the Yasukuni Shrine, which honors war criminals among the country's war dead.Attempts to change history "destabilize regional peace and pose a serious challenge to the pea

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) – Riding on a legislative document on Korean and other Asian women forced to serve in sexual slavery for Japanese troops during World War II, three U.S. congressmen sent a letter Wednesday to Secretary of State John Kerry urging him to address the issue.They are Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) and Adam Schiff (D-CA).The lawmakers said the letter is aimed at bringing the secretary's attention to the historic document attached to a spending bill for fiscal year 2014.

NEW YORK (Yonhap) – South and North Korea displayed rare unity on the U.N. Security Council Wednesday, as they fiercely condemned Japan for history "distortions."The two Koreas, backed by China, said that Japan's conservative leadership is fully responsible for escalating tensions in Northeast Asia over history and territorial issues.Amb. Oh Joon, South Korea's permanent representative to the U.N., accused Japanese leaders of having a "distorted view of what happened during the time of imperiali

FALLUJAH, Iraq (AFP) - Iraq is preparing a "major attack" to retake militant-held Fallujah, a senior official said on Sunday, spelling a new assault for the western city where U.S. forces repeatedly battled insurgents.Washington said it would help Baghdad in its battle against Al-Qaeda-linked militants but that there would be no return of U.S. troops.The takeover of Fallujah and parts of provincial capital Ramadi farther west is the first time that militants have exercised such open control in m

VATICAN CITY (AFP) - Pope Francis said Sunday he will make his first trip to the Holy Land, visiting Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusalem from May 24 to 26."In the climate of joy typical of this Christmas period, I would like to announce that from May 24 to 26, God willing, I will carry out a pilgrimage to the Holy Land," Francis told crowds gathered in St Peter's Square for the traditional Angelus prayer.Francis said the date of the announcement -- January 5 -- was significant because it "commemorate

A local publisher of a history textbook that is accused of containing right-leaning ideological biases claimed Sunday that progressive civic groups and politicians are engaging in a "witch hunt" to prevent its material from being taught in classrooms.Kyohak Publishing told Yonhap News Agency that its textbooks passed the inspections system set up by the education ministry and could be taught in schools.It said efforts by certain progressive groups can only be seen as an attempt to paint the book

BANGALORE, India (AFP) – India was set for the launch of its first domestically-powered cryogenic rocket Sunday, as Delhi bids to join an elite club of countries with the technology after a crash and a fuel leak on previous attempts.Scientists were making final preparations for the launch of the rocket using a complex technology mastered by just a handful of countries, a top Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) official said.The 415-ton rocket carrying a two-ton advanced communications sate

PANAJI, India (AP) – Rescuers using backhoes and shovels searched for survivors Sunday under a massive pile of broken concrete and dust that was left when a residential building under construction collapsed in southern India, killing at least 15 workers.Authorities suspected dozens more may be trapped under the rubble, but were still trying to determine how many workers were on site when the five-story structure crumpled Saturday afternoon in the state of Goa. Witnesses reported seeing at least