Seoul

South Korea and the US plan to conduct the largest-ever combined live-fire drills in June as part of a program to celebrate the 70th anniversary of their alliance, Seoul's Defence Ministry said

North Korea said Monday it has conducted submarine-launched cruise missile tests, days after its leader Kim Jong Un ordered his troops to be ready to repel its rivals' frantic war preparation moves. The test on Sunday came a day before the U.S. and South Korean militaries begin large-scale joint military drills that North Korea views as a rehearsal for invasion. North Korea's official news outlet, the Korean Central News Agency, said Monday that the missile launches showed the North's resolve to respond with overwhelming powerful forces to the intensifying military maneuvers by the the U.S. imperialists and the South Korean puppet forces. KCNA also implied that the North aims to arm the cruise missiles tested with nuclear warheads. It said the missiles flew for more than two hours, drawing figure-eight-shaped patterns in waters off the country's eastern coast, and hit targets 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) away. The missiles were fired from the 8.24 Yongung ship, KCNA said, referenci

Cars slowed and stopped on icy roads and bundled-up commuters gingerly navigated snow-covered sidewalks as a snowstorm swept through the South Korean capital of Seoul and nearby regions on Thursday, extending a frigid cold spell that has the country in its grip. There were no immediate reports of major disruptions or damage caused by the snow, ice and subzero temperatures as of Thursday afternoon, as officials lifted their heavy snow warnings for the area after the snowfall weakened following morning commuting hours. Traffic on the country's major roads was normal, although 110 hiking trails across three national parks remained closed. More than 5 centimeters (2 inches) of snow fell in Seoul in the 24 hours through 11 a.m. Thursday, while neighbouring Gyeonggi province and Incheon saw 6 to 8 centimeters (2.3 to 3 inches) of snow. Morning temperatures in the region fell to around minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit). The country's weather agency forecasted similar weathe

The lowest apparent temperature for Seoul was minus 25.5 degrees, while that of Cheorwon was minus 39.3 degrees

More than 800 firefighters, police officers and public workers were deployed to fight the flame and handle evacuations after the fire broke out around 6:30 am

North Korea launched a ballistic missile Sunday off its east coast, South Korea said. South Korea's Joint Chief of Staff said the launch was made on Sunday morning but gave no further details. The launch came three days after North Korea said it tested a high-thrust solid-fuel motor for a new strategic weapon, a development that could allow it to possess a more mobile, harder-to-detect arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland. In recent months, North Korea has test-fired a barrage of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles including last month's launch of its developmental, longest-range, liquid-fueled Hwasong-17 ICBM designed to carry multiple warheads. Some experts say North Korea would eventually use an expanded arsenal to seek sanctions relief and other concessions from the United States.

The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made insult-laden threats against South Korea on Thursday for considering unliteral sanctions on the North, calling the South's new president and his government "idiots" and "a running wild dog gnawing on a bone given by the US". Kim Yo Jong's diatribe came two days after South Korea's Foreign Ministry said that it was reviewing additional unilateral sanctions on North Korea over its recent barrage of missile tests. The ministry said it would also consider sanctions and clampdowns on North Korea's alleged cyberattacks a new key source of funding for its weapons program if the North conducts a major provocation like a nuclear test. "I wonder what sanctions' the South Korean group, no more than a running wild dog gnawing on a bone given by the US, impudently impose on North Korea," Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. "What a spectacle sight!" She called South Korea's new President Yoon Suk Yeol and his ...

South Korea's military says North Korea has fired at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern sea, the latest in a series of weapons tests that have raised tensions in the region. Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff didn't immediately confirm what type of missile was fired Thursday or how far the weapon flew. The launch came a day after North Korea fired more than 20 missiles, the most it has fired in a single day ever. One of those missile flew in the direction of a populated South Korean island and landed near the rivals' tense sea border, triggering air raid sirens and forcing residents in Ulleung island to evacuate. South Korea quickly responded by launching its own missiles in the same border area. Wednesday's launches came hours after North Korea threatened to use nuclear weapons to get the US and South Korea to pay the most horrible price in history in protest of ongoing South Korean-US military drills that it views as a rehearsal for a potential invasion.

South Korea's police chief admitted "a heavy responsibility" for failing to prevent a recent crowd surge that killed more than 150 people during Halloween festivities in Seoul, saying on Tuesday that officers didn't effectively handle earlier emergency calls about the impending disaster. The admission came as the South Korean government faces growing public scrutiny over whether the crowd surge Saturday night in Seoul's Itaewon district, a popular nightlife neighbourhood, could have been prevented and who should take the responsibility for the country's worst disaster in years. I feel a heavy responsibility (for the disaster) as the head of one of related government offices, Yoon Hee Keun, commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency, told a televised news conference. Police will do their best to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again. Yoon said an initial investigation has found that there were many urgent calls by citizens notifying authorities about the ...

In one moment, thousands of Halloween revellers crammed into the narrow, vibrant streets of Seoul's most cosmopolitan neighbourhood, eager to show off their capes, wizard hats and bat wings. In the next, panic spread as an unmanageable mass of people jammed into a narrow alley in Itaewon. Toppled revellers stacked on one another "like dominoes" in a chaotic crush so intense that clothes were ripped off. A stunned Seoul was just beginning on Monday to put together the huge scope of the crowd surge that killed mostly people in their 20s and 30s, including foreign nationals, on Saturday night. As of Sunday evening, officials put the death toll at 153 and the number of injured people at 133. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said it expected the death toll to rise on account of the number of injured people in serious conditions. Witnesses say the nightmarish scene intensified as people performed CPR on the dying and carried limp bodies to ambulances, while dance music pulsed from

The stampede took place on Saturday night and led to death of at least 26 foreign nationals from 14 countries when crowd celebrating Halloween swelled in narrow alleys of Seoul's nightlife district

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday wrote to South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and expressed deep anguish at the tragic loss of lives at the deadliest stampede in the country's history which killed at least 153 people, including over 20 foreigners. The stampede happened on Saturday night in a narrow downhill alley near Hamilton Hotel in the famous nightlife district in Seoul after tens of thousands of people visited the area for Halloween celebrations. "PM @narendramodi in his letter to ROK President Yoon Suk Yeol @President_KR has expressed deep anguish at the tragic loss of lives at yesterday's stampede incident in Seoul. He also conveyed his heartfelt condolences to the friends and families who lost their loved ones," the Indian Embassy in South Korea tweeted on Sunday. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday condoled the loss of lives in the stampede, and said India stands in solidarity with that country during this difficult time. "Deeply shocked at the loss of

Concerned relatives raced to hospitals in search of their loved ones on Sunday as South Korea mourned the deaths of at least 151 people, mostly in their teens and 20s, who got trapped and crushed after a huge Halloween party crowd surged into a narrow alley in a nightlife district in Seoul. Witnesses said the crowd surge in the Itaewon area on Saturday night caused a hell-like chaos as people fell on each other like dominos. Some people were bleeding from their noses and mouths while being given CPR, witnesses said, while others clad in Halloween costumes continued to sing and dance nearby, possibly without knowing the severity of the situation. I still can't believe what has happened. It was like a hell, said Kim Mi Sung, an official at a non-profit organisation that promotes tourism in Itaewon. Kim said she performed CPR on 10 people who were unconscious and nine of them were declared dead on the spot. Kim said the 10 were mostly women wearing witch outfits and other Halloween .

World leaders expressed sadness and condolences after at least 151 people were killed in a crowd surge Saturday night in Seoul, South Korea. The tragedy occurred in Seoul's Itaewon district during Halloween festivities when a huge crowd surged into a narrow downhill alley. At least 82 others were injured in the South Korea's deadliest accident in years. US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden sent their deepest condolences to the families of the deceased. We grieve with the people of the Republic of Korea and wish for a quick recovery to all those who were injured, said President Biden in a tweet. The United States stands with the Republic of Korea during this tragic time. Similarly, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak described the news from Seoul as horrific on Twitter. All our thoughts are with those currently responding and all South Koreans at this very distressing time, Sunak wrote. Itaewon's international character was shaped by its proximity to a US military garri

At least 59 people were killed and 150 more were injured after being crushed by a large crowd pushing forward on a narrow street during Halloween festivities in the capital Seoul, South Korean officials said. Choi Seong-beom, chief of Seoul's Yongsan fire department, said the death toll could grow as emergency workers were continuing to transport the injured to hospitals across Seoul following the stampede in the leisure district of Itaewon Saturday night. Choi said 13 of the dead have been sent to hospitals while the bodies of the remaining 46 were still on the streets. Officials say it was believed that people were crushed to death after a large crowd began pushing forward in a narrow alley near Hamilton Hotel, a major party spot in Seoul.

China's top legislator was set to meet South Korean leaders including new President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul on Friday, as Yoon's push to buttress a military alliance with Washington has caused concerns that it could hamper Seoul's ties with Beijing. Li Zhanshu, third in the Chinese Communist Party hierarchy and one of President Xi Jinping's closest confidants, is the highest-level Chinese official to visit South Korea since his predecessor came here in 2015. Li's trip is seen as part of Beijing's efforts to boost ties with neighboring countries ahead of a Communist Party congress next month that will likely grant Xi a third five-year term as leader. Li's visit is also crucial for Yoon's government as it wants to assure Beijing that its push to reinforce the U.S. alliance and participations in US-led regional initiatives won's target China, its biggest trading partner. Li, chairman of the standing committee of China's National People's Congress, heads a 66-member Chinese delegation to

Samsung Electronics on Friday held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new semiconductor research and development (R&D) complex here, in a move to bolster its global leadership in cutting-edge chip technology.

North Korea blamed the country's Covid-19 outbreak on leaflets flown from across the border from South Korea, while warning of deadly retaliation

Heavy rains drenched South Korea's capital region, turning the streets of Seoul's affluent Gangnam district into a river, leaving submerged vehicles and overwhelming public transport systems.

Investor sentiment has been unduly negative toward Samsung Electronics in light of the company's strong performance and solid earnings forecast, a chief analyst at a local research firm has said