Memorial service honors 179 air crash victims

SEOUL, January 18 (AJP) -- Hundreds of bereaved families gathered Saturday at a joint memorial service for the victims of last month's airplane crash, which claimed the lives of 179 people on board. On Dec. 29, a Jeju Air passenger jet crashed while landing at Muan International Airport in the southwestern city of Muan. Of the 181 people aboard, only two crewmembers survived one of the country’s worst aviation disasters. Organized by the Ministry of Land, Infrastruct

January 18, 2025

Yoon attends court hearing on arrest warrant over martial law

SEOUL, January 18 (AJP) -- Impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol appeared in court Saturday for a hearing that will decide whether to extend his detention over last month's martial law declaration. Yoon was apprehended Wednesday as part of an investigation into alleged insurrection and abuse of power. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO) filed for a court warrant for Yoon’s formal arrest Friday before his 48-hour detention expired. If gran

January 18, 2025

Yoon to attend court hearing on arrest warrant

SEOUL, January 18 (AJP) - President Yoon Suk Yeol will attend a court hearing Saturday, where a judge will review an arrest warrant against the impeached leader over last month’s martial law debacle, his lawyers said. Yoon was apprehended on Wednesday as part of an investigation into alleged insurrection and abuse of power related to his brief declaration of martial law on Dec. 3. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO) sought a court warrant on

January 18, 2025

Culture Minister to promote tourism to Seoul in Malaysia

SEOUL, January 17 (AJP) - Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Yu In-chon will visit Malaysia over the weekend to attend a series of meetings aimed at promoting tourism between Asian countries. He is set to attend the ASEAN+3 Tourism Ministers Meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Tourism Forum, which kicked off earlier this week and runs until next Monday, bringing together tourism ministers and other officials from ASEAN's 10 member countries and neighboring nations. Wh

January 17, 2025

Busan's English radio station garners over 100,000 subscribers on YouTube

SEOUL, January 17 (AJP) - A YouTube channel operated by the Busan English Broadcasting Foundation (BeFM) has surpassed 100,000 subscribers, according to the southern port city. Starting its service last year, BeFM has been offering programs in English as well as in Chinese and Vietnamese. The number of its subscribers rapidly grew from 4,600 to over 100,000 in just about a year and it now boasts the highest number of YouTube subscribers among local radio stations there. Despite b

January 17, 2025

Investigators seek to extend Yoon's detention

SEOUL, January 17 (AJP) - The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO) filed for a fresh warrant with the Seoul Western District Court on Friday to extend President Yoon Suk Yeol's detention, as his 48-hour detention period expires this evening. The move, which would allow the CIO to detain him for up to 20 days, comes after a court's rejection the previous day of Yoon's request for an injunction disputing the legality of his arrest warrant over h

January 17, 2025

Constitutional Court holds second hearing in impeachment trial with Yoon's absence

SEOUL, January 16 (AJP) - The Constitutional Court of Korea held the second hearing of President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment trial in Seoul on Thursday, after rejecting his earlier request to reschedule it. After the first hearing ended in just a few minutes earlier this week, Thursday's hearing proceeded with Yoon's absence once again. A court spokesperson told reporters, "After thorough discussion, the panel of justices unanimously decided to reject Yoon's

January 16, 2025

Ruling party now takes slim lead in latest poll

SEOUL, January 16 (AJP) - The ruling People Power Party (PPP) has slightly edged ahead of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) in support ratings, recovering from a sharp drop in popularity after President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law debacle last month. A survey of over 1,000 adults, by the National Barometer Survey (NBS) conducted earlier this week and released Thursday, found that about 35 percent supported the PPP, up 3 percentage points from the previous week, w

January 16, 2025

North Korean leader 'relies on nuclear weapons to maintain power,' US secretary of State nominee says

SEOUL, January 16 (AJP) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un uses nuclear weapons as a means of maintaining his grip on power, a nominee for U.S. Secretary of State said on Wednesday. During his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Marco Rubio described Kim as "a 40-something-year-old dictator who has to figure out how to hold down to power for the rest of his life," adding that "he has used nuclear weapons as his insurance policy to sta

January 16, 2025

Yoon refuses further questioning after hours of silence in initial inquiry

SEOUL, January 16 (AJP) - President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday declined further questioning after being grilled for several hours the previous day, shortly after his arrest by investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO). Yoon's legal representatives said that the president was "not feeling well" and had already expressed his position during his previous questioning session, which lasted nearly 11 hours at the CIO headquarters

January 16, 2025