Journalist
Lee Hugh
=
-
About 140 South Koreans in Iran and Israel evacuated to neighboring countries SEOUL, March 4 (AJP) - About 140 South Koreans who had been staying in Iran and Israel have been evacuated to neighboring Turkmenistan and Egypt, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here said on Wednesday. In Iran, about two dozen South Koreans split into two buses arranged by the South Korean Embassy there and left Tehran on Monday and safely arrived in neighboring Turkmenistan the following day amid escalating tensions in the Gulf region following last Saturday's U.S.-led airstrikes on the Middle Eastern country. The evacuees included not only residents but also about 10 embassy staff members and their families, as well as some Iranian nationals who are family members of South Koreans or ethnic Koreans. Also leaving Iran were Lee Do‑hee, head coach of Iran's women's national volleyball team, and Lee Ki‑je, a defender for Iranian professional soccer club Mes Rafsanjan FC. According to the ministry, about 40 South Korean residents still remain in Iran. A ministry official said withdrawing the embassy is "not currently being considered," adding that the government will continue to take responsibility for evacuations while monitoring whether the situation becomes prolonged. In Israel, where about 600 South Korean nationals including around100 short-term visitors are currently staying, some 113 people left Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Tuesday and arrived in Egypt later that day. Separately, two South Koreans in Bahrain and two in Iraq also evacuated to Saudi Arabia and Turkey, respectively. Meanwhile, Kim Young-bae, a lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party (DP), on Tuesday urged the government to draw up plans to safely evacuate South Korean residents and travelers in the Middle East to neighboring countries in case the situation worsens. "As many as 21,000 South Koreans are currently residing in some 13 countries in the Middle East. Among them, about 4,000 short-term visitors including travelers are in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates," he said. 2026-03-04 09:31:00 -
Braves’ Jurickson Profar Tests Positive for PEDs Again, Facing 162-Game Ban Atlanta Braves outfielder Jurickson Profar, a teammate of infielder Kim Ha-seong, has tested positive for a banned substance for the second time in his career. ESPN reported that a performance-enhancing drug was detected in Profar’s drug test on March 4 (Korean time). Profar previously tested positive last year and was suspended for 80 games. With a second violation, he now faces a 162-game suspension. Profar became the sixth player to be caught twice in MLB drug testing since the league strengthened penalties in 2014, according to the report. Before the 2025 season, Profar signed a three-year, $42 million contract with Atlanta. If the suspension is finalized, he would forfeit his $15 million salary for this season. Profar, who is from Curacao in the Netherlands, had been expected to play for the Netherlands in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, but his participation is now in doubt. Profar and Kim have been close friends, playing together with the San Diego Padres and again in Atlanta. 2026-03-04 09:30:55 -
Lee Kun-hee Collection Tour Heads to Chicago With 2,000 Years of Korean Art The Lee Kun-hee Collection’s overseas tour is continuing, with Chicago set as the next stop after the first exhibition in Washington. The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the National Museum of Korea said on the 4th that the tour’s second exhibition, “Korean National Treasures: 2,000 Years of Art,” will be held at the Art Institute of Chicago. Opening on the 7th, the show brings together 257 objects from 140 cultural properties spanning traditional and modern Korean art. Highlights include seven national treasures and 15 “treasures” from the National Museum of Korea, as well as 13 major works of modern and contemporary art from the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, including pieces by Kim Whanki, Park Su-geun and Chang Ucchin. The international tour of works donated by the late Lee Kun-hee began in November last year with the special exhibition “Korea’s Treasures: Collecting, Cherishing, Sharing” at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C. The museum said the show drew about 80,000 visitors, its largest attendance for a special exhibition in the past five years. The tour now moves to Chicago, where it will run from March 7 to July 5 at the Art Institute of Chicago, described by the organizers as one of the most influential museums in the United States. The institute is housed in a building constructed for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, which the article notes was a significant venue where Joseon presented an exhibition to introduce its history and culture to the international community after the 1882 Korea-U.S. treaty. The Art Institute expanded in 2009 with the Modern Wing designed by architect Renzo Piano. Organizers said this exhibition will be the first Asian art special exhibition held in the Modern Wing’s first-floor special exhibition galleries. The exhibition includes many nationally designated cultural properties. Among 22 representative works from the National Museum of Korea are Jeong Seon’s “Inwang Jesaekdo,” Kim Hong-do’s “Chuseongbudo,” a white porcelain bowl inscribed with “Cheon·ji·hyeon·hwang,” a gilt-bronze Buddha from the Three Kingdoms period, the Goryeo-era “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” painting, and the early Joseon text “Seokbosangjeol.” From the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Lee Kun-hee Collection, the show presents 13 modern and contemporary masterpieces reflecting Korea’s turbulent 20th-century history. In addition to Kim Whanki’s “Sanhullim 19-II-73#307” (1973) and Baek Nam-sun’s “Paradise” (1936), shown in the first tour stop, 11 newly selected works will be added. Among them are Lee Jung-seop’s “Bull” (1950s) and “Family and First Snow” (1950s), Park Su-geun’s “Woman Pounding Grain” (1957), and Chang Ucchin’s “Ferryboat” (1951). Also included are Kim Eun-ho’s “Ganseong” (1927), Park Rae-hyun’s “Flute” (1956), Lee Jong-woo’s “Portrait of a Friend” (1926), Lee Ungno’s “Crowd” (1988), and Kim Ki-chang’s “War Horses” (1955). The works, once privately held, became public assets after Lee’s family donated them to the nation in 2021. Organizers said the title “Korean National Treasures” is intended not only to refer to officially designated national treasures but also to convey the idea of “the nation’s treasures” shared by the public. After the Chicago run ends July 5, the exhibition will move to the British Museum in London, where it is scheduled to be held from Oct. 1 to 2027-01-31. 2026-03-04 09:25:14 -
Shin Wonho to Return With First Mini Album 'ONE' Singer and actor Shin Wonho, a member of the group Cross Gene, is returning to music. He will release his first mini album, ‘ONE,’ at noon on March 4 through major online music platforms. The title track, ‘Warzone,’ is a pop song with an unconventional structure that portrays lovers who hurt each other, reconcile and continue healing through a repeating cycle. While framed as a love story, it also raises a question about what true peace means, aiming to deliver a layered message. The six-track album also includes ‘Hug me,’ about a moment of wanting to lean deeply into someone’s embrace; ‘Placebo,’ a pledge to push past limits; and ‘Chaewoo,’ which depicts an empty soul being filled. Instrumental versions of ‘Warzone’ and ‘Chaewoo’ are also included. Shin has rolled out teaser content ahead of the release, including 10-second track preview videos featuring melodies in different moods and his distinctive vocal tone, drawing strong reactions from global fans. He also took on self-producing across the project, highlighting his musical capabilities. The mini album ‘ONE’ will be available at noon on March 4 on major online music platforms.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 09:15:19 -
Shinhan Bank Launches Web-Based 'Shinhan eFX' Platform for Corporate FX Trading Shinhan Bank said Tuesday it has revamped its non-face-to-face foreign exchange trading platform for corporate clients, "Shinhan eFX," into a web-based service. Shinhan eFX is a specialized FX platform that lets corporate customers check real-time exchange rates online and execute trades. It offers transactions commonly used in corporate FX operations, including immediate settlement, spot FX, forward FX, market average rate (MAR) trades and FX swaps. The key change is that eFX, previously offered as an add-on within the bank’s corporate internet banking, has been converted into a standalone platform. Shinhan Bank said it upgraded functions so orders can be executed immediately using real-time quote collection and an automated pricing engine, and it fully introduced "netting settlement" and "forward maturity management" features. Netting settlement combines or offsets multiple transactions in the same currency and settlement account so only the net difference is paid, improving cash-management efficiency and reducing unnecessary settlement funding burdens. A Shinhan Bank official said the service has moved beyond an add-on to become a dedicated FX platform, adding that the bank will "raise corporate customers’ FX risk management to the next level" through differentiated features such as real-time trading, forward maturity management and integrated support for netting settlement.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 09:04:05 -
Hyundai Opens Whitney Museum Exhibition 'Hyundai Terrace Commission: Kelly Akashi' Hyundai Motor said Wednesday it will present the third exhibition in its long-term partnership with the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, “Hyundai Terrace Commission: Kelly Akashi,” from March 8 (local time) through Aug. 23. The Hyundai Terrace Commission is a program launched in 2024 by Hyundai Motor and the Whitney to give artists and curators room for creative experimentation beyond conventional formats, the company said. Akashi, the third artist selected for the commission, was born in the United States in 1983 and is based in Los Angeles. She has worked with materials including glass, bronze and stone, exploring themes of life and the limits of existence. For the Whitney presentation, Akashi will introduce new works spanning installation, sculpture and animation, drawing on personal experience. The exhibition centers on “Monument (Altadena)” (2026), which reconstructs in glass bricks a chimney and the walkway leading to it — the only part left after a wildfire in northern Los Angeles in January last year destroyed the artist’s home and studio. Installed on the museum’s fifth-floor terrace, the work reframes the space as a site for reflection on survival, loss and the incompleteness of what remains. Also on view is “Inheritance (Distressed)” (2026), inspired by the lace doily of the artist’s grandmother that was lost in the same fire. The work raises questions about how inherited legacies should be treated and remembered. The exhibition’s broader material inquiry into traces, memory and aftereffects extends to an animated work, “Remnants (Constellations)” (2026), shown on a large outdoor media wall on the terrace. “Rebuilding is not simply restoration, but a practice that symbolizes devoted labor and a dialogue with history,” Akashi said. “The process of stacking bricks one by one projects memory itself, and memory regains meaning through constant attention and patience.” “Each brick contains a record of the labor and transformation it has undergone, and together they become a new presence that holds traces of the past,” she said. Whitney curator Marcela Guerrero said Akashi “skillfully handles a range of materials, including glass and steel, and has harmoniously realized the conceptual and technical completeness essential to large-scale outdoor sculpture.” A Hyundai Motor official said the company hopes the exhibition will prompt audiences to reconsider the relationship between individuals and communities and to explore the possibility of genuine solidarity, in line with the commission’s aim of bringing artistic inspiration to more people.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 09:03:23 -
Six South Korean Music Rights Groups Form Joint Front on AI Copyright Lee Si-ha, president of the Korea Music Copyright Association, has launched what the group called a “declaration of war” for the AI era in his first official move since taking office. Citing rapid growth in generative AI and what he described as unprecedented upheaval in the global music business, Lee called an emergency meeting of music rights organizations. On Feb. 26, the heads of six groups formally launched the K-Music Rights Organizations Coexistence Committee, known as the Coexistence Committee. The committee brings together the Korea Music Copyright Association (President Lee Si-ha), the Korea Record Industry Association (President Choi Kyung-sik), the Korea Entertainment Producers Association (President Lim Baek-woon), the Together Music Copyright Association (Chairman Han Dong-heon), the Korea Music Performers Association (President Lee Jeong-hyeon) and the Korea Music Content Association (Chairman Woo Seung-hyeon). Lee was elected chair. The committee said the industry faces a “fourfold crisis”: the spread of generative AI, blockchain-driven decentralization, overseas outflows of Hallyu-related revenue, and a reshaping of the platform market. It said it aims to go beyond policy proposals and position South Korea as a rule-setter by taking the lead in “copyright management technology.” At the center of its plan is a blockchain-based integrated infrastructure to unify fragmented rights data. The committee said it will seek core technology to link four major codes into a single data structure: ISWC (International Standard Musical Work Code) for musical works such as composition and lyrics; ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) for sound recordings; YouTube’s CID (Content ID) system used to identify rights holders by recognizing audio and content in uploaded videos; and UCI (Universal Content Identifier), a national content identification system. The goal, it said, is to complete a “K-copyright standard model” that can track, collect and distribute royalties in real time without missing a single use, and to strengthen leadership in the copyright market. To carry out the plan, the six groups agreed to form a joint AI response task force, create a single negotiation channel and establish a joint fund, aiming to speak with one voice rather than respond separately. At the launch ceremony, the leaders also signed a joint declaration titled, “In the AI era, we declare the noble sovereignty of human creation,” pledging to protect creators’ rights against big capital and algorithms. The declaration calls for banning AI training without creators’ consent, requiring transparency in AI generation processes, and institutionalizing clear distinctions between human-created works and AI-generated output. “The next two years are a golden time that will determine the survival of Korea’s music industry,” Lee said. “Individual responses cannot stop this massive wave, so six organizations have joined hands. We will establish the copyright management system we build as a global standard and make Korea lead the world’s copyright order.” The committee said it will begin regular meetings and move quickly to design an integrated platform and pursue related institutional improvements.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 09:00:47 -
Wolves Beat Liverpool 2-1 as Hwang Hee-chan Returns to Bench After Injury Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan, sidelined by injury, was back in the matchday squad, raising expectations he could return to action soon. Wolverhampton beat Liverpool 2-1 in a 2025-2026 English Premier League Round 29 home match at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, on Tuesday (Korean time). The win was the club’s second straight and cut the gap to last place, narrowing the deficit to Burnley (16 points), which has played one fewer match, to three points. Hwang was named among the substitutes. He started the club’s Round 25 home match against Chelsea on Feb. 8 but was substituted in the 43rd minute of the first half after complaining of calf muscle pain. He was then left out of the squad for four straight matches. With Hwang back on the bench, his on-field return appears close. The development could also be a boost for Hong Myung-bo’s national team ahead of the North American World Cup, as Hwang’s speed and physical play can add another attacking option.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 08:42:16 -
Arrest warrant issued for Ex-DP lawmaker over bribery allegations SEOUL, March 4 (AJP) - Kang Sun-woo, a former lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) was arrested on Tuesday over alleged bribery and breach of trust. The Seoul Central District Court issued arrest warrants for Kang, along with Kim Kyung, a former Seoul city official, citing concerns that they might destroy evidence. Their arrest comes about two months after the allegations surfaced late last year, prompting the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency to launch an investigation. Kang has been accused of receiving 100 million Korean won (US$68,500) from Kim in return for the DP's candidate nominations for the 2022 local elections. In South Korea, lawmakers are immune from arrest during a parliamentary session unless the National Assembly votes to lift that protection, but it passed a motion earlier last week allowing Kang's arrest. For now, Kang and Kim are being held at a police station in Mapo, Seoul while the investigation continues. Police should hand suspects over to prosecutors within 10 days after an arrest, so the case is expected to be sent to prosecutors next week. 2026-03-04 08:33:07 -
Chevrolet Launches 2026 Trax Crossover RS Ignite Edition, Opens Preorders Chevrolet said Tuesday it has launched the 2026 Trax Crossover “RS Ignite Edition” and begun taking preorders. The RS Ignite Edition was planned with inspiration from a rear red LED black bowtie emblem designed to stand out at night. Based on the RS trim — short for Rally Sport — the special edition combines red accents with carbon-look details to set its exterior apart. Inside, it applies an RS black-and-red-point interior and adds a black headliner for a more unified look, Chevrolet said. Chevrolet has been expanding color choices for the 2026 Trax Crossover, introducing “Mochaccino Beige” on the RS and ACTIV trims and “Chili Pepper Red” on the RS trim. It also offers connected features including OnStar-based over-the-air vehicle software updates. The RS Ignite Edition is priced at 28.86 million won, based on an individual consumption tax rate of 3.5%. Preorders are being accepted starting March 4 through Chevrolet showrooms nationwide.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-03-04 08:27:15