A worker in his 40s was crushed by an industrial robot that apparently failed to differentiate a human from crates of farm produce for it to move, police said Wednesday. The accident happened Tuesday at approximately 7:45 p.m. when the robotics company worker was inspecting the sensor operations of a robot at a distribution center for agricultural produce in Goseong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, according to Goseong Police Station. The robot, designed to handle boxes filled with paprika pepp

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk has hinted at the possibility of running for the National Assembly in next year's general elections, in a bid to restore his honor. Appearing on a YouTube show hosted by left-leaning broadcaster Kim Ou-joon, Cho expressed his desire to clear his name through legal means while currently standing trial. However, if his legal efforts do not yield the desired results, he said he is considering "nonlegal measures" to rebuild his reputation. “It c

Jeon Cheong-jo, the former fiance of Olympic fencing medalist Nam Hyun-hee, has admitted to spanking Nam's teenage nephew "for discipline." The Seongnam Jungwon Police Station conducted an investigation into allegations of child abuse, intimidation and stalking involving Nam Hyun-hee's former fiance on Saturday. Jeon is alleged to have struck Nam's middle school-aged nephew approximately ten times on the buttocks with the handle of a child's golf club at Nam

A young Korean has been found dead at lodgings in the Himalayan region of Nepal, where he was on a solo trekking trip, according to local news reports. Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the death of a Korean national in his or her 20s, but did not disclose any additional information. “We have informed the trekker's family about this tragic incident and are providing necessary assistance to the family, regarding the transportation of the body, their entry into Nepal an

In July 2006, a 40-year-old French national residing in Seoul made a macabre discovery at home in his freezer. Before he could store some fish inside, he found the bodies of two infant boys. Jean-Louis Courjault, an engineer working for a car parts company in Seoul, was home alone in Seorae Village, southern Seoul, after returning from a family holiday in France. His wife, Veronique Courjault, 39, was still on vacation in France with their two teen sons. He promptly reported the findings to

It may seem somewhat ironic to call a fluffy doll ornament adorning a handbag a "key ring," as it seemingly serves no practical purpose and has no keys attached. Instead, it's all about the aesthetic for many young Koreans, who embellish their bags with these key rings, also known as bag charms. "I visited a cafe in Seoul's Yeonnam-dong with my friends and decided to get this fleecy bear for my bag," university student Park Ji-soo said after buying a white bear ba

Almost 1 in 3 senior pension recipients expressed a desire or need to work to cover their living expenses, data showed Monday. According to data released by Statistics Korea, within a demographic of 7.78 million people aged between 55 and 79 eligible for pensions as of May this year, 61.6 percent expressed a preference for employment, with the largest portion of them at 31.9 percent seeking additional income to sustain their living. Approximately 24 percent of those who expressed a desire to wor

For centuries and continuing to present day, Koreans have utilized the medicinal properties of plants and animal-based natural sources in the field of medicine. One such example is "ssanghwa cha," a medicinal herb tea that remains popular among Koreans despite its bitter taste, thanks to its reputation as a natural remedy for a cold or fatigue. This herbal beverage with a brown hue includes a variety of ingredients such as plant roots, grass, leaves and tree bark, which are not commo

A former chief of the Financial Services Commission expressed optimism that the Korean people, who have achieved unprecedented economic growth over the past several decades, possess inherent qualities that will enable them to surmount the global economic crisis. Speaking at the Global Business Forum held at Grand Hyatt Seoul on Wednesday, Kim Seok-dong, chairman of the Jipyong Institute of Humanities and Society, an affiliate of Jipyong LLC, gave a historical overview of the factors that led u

The national mental health center for disaster victims provided over 7,000 counseling sessions over last year's tragic Itaewon disaster, data showed Tuesday. The National Center for Disaster and Trauma conducted 7,141 counseling sessions over the past year after the Itaewon crowd crush that took 159 lives on Oct. 29, 2022, according to data sourced from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and disclosed by Rep. In Jae-keun of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. In the period from

Almost 6 in 10 Koreans believe in the correlation of blood types -- A, B, O or AB -- and personalities, a survey showed Friday. In a Gallup Korea poll of 1,501 adults aged 19 and over, approximately 57 percent of respondents support the concept of the blood type personality theory, a pseudoscientific notion suggesting that blood types can predict one's personality and temperament. In terms of preferences for a certain blood type, 49 percent of the respondents favored type O blood, follo

Nearly 1 in 3 Korean adults is classified as "obese," with over half of Korean men in their 30s falling within that range, data showed Thursday. According to nationwide data released by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the percentage of adults with a body mass index higher than 25 -- the cutoff for obesity in Korea -- reached 32.5 percent last year, marking an increase of 0.3 percentage point from 2021. The obsesity rate, based on BMI, a measure of body mass divided b

An endangered sea turtle was found dead in seas near Jeju Island on Saturday, with a fishhook lodged in its front flipper, the Coast Guard reported. The Seogwipo Coast Guard Station said Monday that it located the dead body of a green sea turtle, a globally endangered species, in waters off Beophwan Port in the city of Seogwipo on Jeju Island. The 60-centimeter-long turtle had a fishhook stuck in its right front flipper and was estimated to have been dead at least for 20 days, considering the

Adding to unease among South Koreans in a conflict-ridden world this year is the recent full-blown war that broke out between Hamas and Israel early this month. Palestinian militant group Hamas, an Islamist group based in the Gaza Strip, initiated large-scale land and air attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7. In response, Israel declared a state of war against Hamas and launched retaliatory airstrikes on Palestinian territory. The situation resonates with South Korea, where tensions persist betw

The city of Seoul said Thursday that it will add over 2,500 new trash bins on the streets by 2025. The difficulty to dispose of trash in public spaces has been among the most common complaints from foreign visitors to the capital, as well as residents. Across Seoul, a city of some 10 million residents, there are currently fewer than 5,000 trash cans. Public trash cans disappeared en masse from the streets of Seoul and elsewhere across the country following the 1995 introduction of a pay-as-you-t

Runaway inflation is putting pressure on the economically vulnerable across various walks of life, and college students are among those finding new ways to cope with the cost of living. In South Korea, it is not unusual for 20-something children to live with their parents until marriage, often receiving full or partial financial support from them. A survey of 1,319 people in their 20s, conducted by part-time job portal Alba Heaven in August, found that 88.1 percent are financially reliant on

Four in 10 foreigners who initially came to South Korea on a visa mostly granted to Korean language program students ended up becoming illegal immigrants, data showed Tuesday. According to data sourced from the Ministry of Justice and released by Rep. Cho Jung-hun of the Transition Korea party, out of a total of 64,904 foreign nationals who entered Korea on the D-4 General Trainee visa, approximately 40 percent (25,898 individuals) eventually became illegal immigrants, as of June this year. Th

For one local beer aficionado, the recent increase in the variety of alcoholic beverages available at convenience stores has been noticeable and -- to a moderate degree -- welcome. "Various Japanese beer brands are now part of the 'Buy four cans of imported beer for 10,000 won ($7.50)' deal," 32-year-old Lee Hyun-soo told The Korea Herald. "So I thought, 'Why not relish their rich flavor?' Especially since I haven't been to Japan in ages,” he said. M

Breaking the internet in Korea with its catchy, electronic beats and amusing choreography, “Do you know Dr. Hong?” is the latest viral dance challenge to captivate teens and young adults across various social media platforms. At the center of the craze is Jojubong, the digital persona of the Korean comedian Jo Hoon, renowned for running the comedy YouTube channel, "The Myeonsang." Since its initial release in July, the original music video has accumulated five million vie

More than one million Koreans aged over 60 are primary household earners, despite their age falling within the typical retirement phase, data showed Tuesday. According to National Health Insurance data that Rep. Kim Sang-hoon of the ruling People Power Party received from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the number of Korean household breadwinners aged over 60 stood at 1.05 million last year, more than double the figure of 503,840 recorded in 2013. Among individuals with dependents on their