The Islamic State jihadist group claimed Saturday it beheaded British aid worker David Haines, in what would be the third such execution in recent weeks, after two US journalists were shown murdered.The Islamist group released a video, available on the website of private terrorism monitoring group SITE, purportedly showing a masked militant beheading Haines. The two-minute-27-second video titled "A Message to the Allies of America" blames British Prime Minister David Cameron for joining forces w

The beheading of a British hostage by Islamic State militants was an "act of pure evil," Prime Minister David Cameron said Sunday, vowing Britain will do all in its power to bring the killers to justice."This is a despicable and appalling murder of an innocent aid worker. It is an act of pure evil," he said in a statement released by his Downing Street office."We will do everything in our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes."Cameron, who was see

미스유니버스, 미스월드, 어스인터네셔널. 세계 3대 미인대회 그랜드슬램 중 하나로 매년 100명 이상의 전 세계 미인들이 출전하는 대규모 국제대회다.  　그 중 미스월드는 영국 런던에 본부를 두고 1951년 시작돼 세계에서 가장 오래 된 미인대회로 자리 잡았다. 원더우먼으로 유명한 린다카터, 할리베리 등 세계적 탑스타들을 배출하기도 했다. 　미스월드는 전 세계 미인대회에서 ‘선’에 당선된 이들에게 출전자격이 주어진다. ‘진’에 당선되면 미스유니버스에 출전할 수 있다. 　2014년 영국 런던에서 12월 14일 치뤄질 예정인 미스월드 행사를 앞두고 코리아헤럴드는 지난 10년간 미스월드 왕관을 차지했던 역대 우승자들을 소개한다. 　(Yonhap)2013년 미스월드, 메간 영(Megan Young)　메간 영은 90년생으로 필리핀계 미국인 배우이자 모델이다. 인도네시아에서 열린 63번째 미스월드 선발대회에서 우승했다. 필리핀인 어머니와 미국인 아버지를 뒀다. 필리핀 대표로는 처음으로 미스월드

Model Lee Ji-yeon, one of two people charged with blackmailing A-list actor Lee Byung-hun, raised fresh claims that she committed the crime in a fit of rage after the star broke up with her.　The Lee’s lawyer claimed Thursday that she threatened him with a video that could tarnish his image as revenge after the top star split up with her. 　The two started dating three months ago, the lawyer said during the interview with a local media outlet. The Hollywood star is currently married to actress Lee

South Korea expressed support Thursday for U.S. President Barack Obama's plan for airstrikes in Syria and expanded strikes in Iraq to defeat the Islamic State militant group.Obama said Wednesday he won't hesitate to take action against the Islamic State in Syria, as he pledged to "degrade, and ultimately destroy" the extremists responsible for beheading two American journalists."South Korea voices its support to the efforts by the international community to defeat the Islamic State militant grou

South Korea's Cabinet on Thursday approved a bill on a free trade agreement (FTA) with Canada ahead of ratification by the parliament, the prime minister's office said. After nearly nine years of talks, including a five-year hiatus, Seoul and Ottawa concluded the FTA in March this year. The two sides expect the deal to help significantly boost bilateral trade by cutting tariffs on a wide range of products including automobiles and meat.During a weekly meeting held in Seoul earlier in the day, th

South Korean actor Lee Min-ho will embark on a worldwide fan meeting tour in October, his agency announced Thursday. 　Lee will kick off the tour, titled “RE:boot,” in Seoul and hold the first overseas fan meeting on Oct. 4 in Beijing, where Lee has enjoyed immense popularity following the success of his dramas “Boys Over Flowers” and “The Heirs.” 　 (OSEN)The fan festival is set to move to Guangzhou on Oct. 26, Nanjing on Nov. 1 and Shanghai on Nov. 22. A more detailed itinerary will be available

A Seoul district court on Thursday sentenced a former government intelligence chief to two years and six months in prison for meddling in the 2012 presidential election but stayed the sentence for four years.Won Sei-hoon, former director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), was found guilty of spearheading an online smear campaign in favor of President Park Geun-hye, then ruling party candidate, while heading the agency.The Seoul Central District Court found Won guilty of ordering NIS age

South Korea's central bank is expected to keep the base rate on hold in September as it measures the policy effect of last month's rate cut and watches out for risks of ballooning household debt, a poll showed Thursday.All 16 analysts surveyed by Yonhap Infomax, the financial news arm of Yonhap News Agency, forecast the Bank of Korea (BOK) to stand pat on the current policy rate of 2.25 percent at a board meeting on Friday.The latest result comes after the BOK cut the base rate in August for the

The South Korean government announced Thursday it plans to nearly double cigarette prices starting in January as part of efforts to cut the country's high smoking rate that will also include a ban on tobacco advertisements by large retailers."The government will seek to raise cigarette prices by 2,000 won (US$1.93) per pack at the start of next year while also introducing a pricing system where cigarette prices will be pegged to other consumer prices," Health and Welfare Minister Moon Hyung-pyo

The Seoul metropolitan government said Thursday that it will decide whether to allow Lotte Group to open the lower part of a high-rise building late this month after conducting a final safety check.Lotte had originally sought to open the completed lower floors of the 123-story high-rise, which is being built in the southeastern part of the capital, to the public by April. But the city government previously nixed the plan, citing safety concerns as well as possible traffic congestion.In an effort

The floor leaders of the rival political parties plan to meet Thursday in their latest attempt to work out differences over a bill meant to uncover the truth behind April's ferry disaster, officials said.Lee One-koo, floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, was to meet with his opposition counterpart, Park Young-sun, at the National Assembly, officials said, though it remains clear whether they can make progress.The meeting comes weeks after the rival parties' two successive deals on the bill w

South Koreans living abroad will be allowed to file for a national identification card starting in January if they plan to stay in their home country for at least 30 days, the government announced Thursday.The Ministry of Security and Public Administration said starting Jan. 22, 2015, overseas South Koreans may receive resident registration cards to be used in their native country for a stay of 30 days or longer.Previously, South Koreans were not allowed to keep their resident registration here

North Korea has signed a United Nations protocol that protects children from trafficking and sexual exploitation, a U.S.-based media report said Thursday.According to the report by Voice of America, Ja Song-nam, the North Korean ambassador to the U.N., signed the optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child at the U.N. headquarters in New York on Tuesday.The protocol, comprised of 17 articles, calls for the prohibition of trafficking of children, child prostitution and child po

K-pop boy band JYJ’s photo on a plane to Taiwan was released on Wednesday. 　The group’s label C-Jes Entertainment posted a photo of JYJ members posing for a photo en route to Taiwan for their upcoming concert. 　(Facebook)“Hello, Taipei. We are looking forward to meeting you after three years! Dear fans, we will see you tomorrow!” JYJ wrote on Facebook alongside the photo.　Some 200 fans had waited at the airport where JYJ was supposed to arrive, but the band sneaked out through VIP passage. 　The

South Korea's exports of information-communication technology (ICT) products dropped from a year earlier last month partly on a decrease in shipments to China, the government said Thursday.Outbound shipments of ICT products came to US$14.19 billion in August, down 2.1 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.Imports increased 5.9 percent on-year to $6.73 billion, causing the country's trade surplus in the sector to shrink to $7.46 billion fro

Japanese investors have poured their money into South Korean stocks since April partly fueled by Japan's accommodative monetary policy, data showed Thursday. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), Japan-based investors sold more Korean stocks than they bought in the January-March period, but they purchased a net 1.57 trillion won (US$1.52 billion) worth of them from April through Thursday. The influx of Japanese funds into the local equity market in the May-August period averaged

North Korea will send Olympic gold medalists and world champions to the upcoming Asian Games to be held in South Korea, local organizers said Thursday.According to the organizing committee for the Asian Games in Incheon, west of Seoul, North Korea's list of 150 athletes, to compete in 14 of 36 sports, features reigning Olympic champs and winners of recent world championships.Om Yun-chol, the 2012 Olympic weightlifting gold medalist and the 2013 world champion in the men's under-56kg division, wi

The heirs of de facto head of Samsung Electronics Co. Lee Kun-hee, who has been hospitalized since May, faced a nearly 10 percent cut in their inheritance taxes over the past three months on a fall in the company's share prices, data showed Thursday. If Lee's shares in Samsung Electronics are transferred to his offspring -- his son Jay-yong, who is forecast to be the heir apparent, and his two daughters, Boo-jin, and Seo-hyun -- their gift taxes are estimated at 3.71 trillion won (US$3.62 billio

President Barack Obama on Wednesday vowed to strike the "Islamic State" in Syria and to expand operations in Iraq, seizing command of an international coalition to destroy the jihadist army.Obama, who wants history to remember him as the president who ended a decade of foreign wars, launched a major new escalation in the Middle East, also pledging to bolster Iraqi forces and to increase military assistance to Syria's opposition.In a prime-time televised address, Obama said that IS, which has beh