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  Fire breaks out at motorcycle repair shop in Namyangju SEOUL, December 27 (AJP) - A fire broke out at a motorcycle repair shop in Namyangju, south of Seoul, authorities said Saturday. Fire officials said the blaze started about 2:55 p.m. at the shop in Byeollae-myeon, Namyangju, in Gyeonggi province. Black smoke rose from the building, prompting a series of calls from nearby residents. No casualties had been confirmed as of Saturday afternoon. Firefighters deployed 31 pieces of equipment and 78 personnel to contain the flames. P December 27, 2025
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  Seoul's presidential office returns to Cheong Wa Dae Monday SEOUL, December 25 (AJP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will formerly begin work at the Cheong Wa Dae on Monday, making the end of the presidential office's temporary operation in Yongsan-gu. The official name of the president’s office will change from the Office of the President to Cheong Wa Dae on the same day. At midnight, the phoenix flag symbolizing the head of state will be lowered at the Yongsan presidential office to be raised at Cheong Wa Dae. Forme December 26, 2025
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  Special counsel seeks 10-year jail term for ex-President Yoon over martial law case SEOUL, December 26 (AJP) -A special counsel team on Friday asked a Seoul court to sentence former President Yoon Suk Yeol to 10 years in prison on charges including obstruction of justice and abuse of power related to his short-lived martial-law declaration in December last year. It is the first request for sentencing on the disgraced president whose term was cut short in the wake of his Dec. 3 martial-law stunt. During the final hearing of Yoon’s obstruction-of-justice December 26, 2025
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  Ex-Korean president faces closing hearing of insurrection-related trials SEOUL, December 26 (AJP) -Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will face a closing hearing Friday in a criminal case accusing him of obstructing an arrest and infringing Cabinet members’ constitutional rights in connection with his declaration of martial law. The hearing, scheduled for 10:15 a.m. at the Seoul Central District Court, marks the first time one of four insurrection-related cases involving Yoon has reached the final stage of arguments. Legal observers say December 26, 2025
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  Presidential office to raise its phoenix flag at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday SEOUL, December 25 (AJP) - The presidential office said it will raise its phoenix flag at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday, returning to the site after three years and seven months. It said the flag, featuring South Korea's national flower mugunghwa at the center and two phoenixes facing each other, will be lowered at the Yongsan presidential office at midnight on Dec. 29 and simultaneously raised at Cheong Wa Dae. "The official name of the presidential office will be changed to December 25, 2025
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  President Lee pledges warmth and hope for all in first Christmas message SEOUL, December 25 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday expressed hope that the coming year would bring warmth and hope to the daily lives of all people in his first Christmas message since taking office. In a Christmas Day post on Facebook, Lee said, "This is a day that comes around every year, but I hope it brings you a little more happiness, and that you can spend joyful moments smiling with your loved ones." Reflecting on the meaning of Christmas, the preside December 25, 2025
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  Bus drivers in Seoul threaten strike next month over wage dispute SEOUL, December 24 (AJP) - Unionized bus drivers in Seoul threatened on Wednesday to go on a strike next month after wage talks collapsed earlier in the day. They rejected a 10 percent-wage raise offer and threatened to strike on Jan. 13, citing management's failure to fulfill wage-related pledges. They argued that bonuses should be included in their wages, citing a Supreme Court ruling last year, and insisted that this is "not a bargaining issue but a legal requiremen December 24, 2025
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  Korean mukbang gets Ingenious — and a little unhinged — to keep its crown SEOUL, December 24 (AJP) - Heavy is the head that wears the crown, and nowhere is that crown greasier, spicier or more relentlessly filmed than in South Korea's food universe. Once again this year, the surprise breakout star from Korea's global content pipeline is not a pop idol or a prestige drama, but food — turbocharged by its cameo-laden role in Netflix's most-watched-ever series, "KPOP Demon Hunters," and freshly canonized as culture by the Wall St December 24, 2025
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  Presidential office to move back to Cheong Wa Dae early next week SEOUL, December 24 (AJP) - President Lee Jae-myung is set to move into the sprawling compound of Cheong Wa Dae in central Seoul early next week, after vacating the current presidential office in Yongsan, his officials said on Wednesday. The relocation of the presidential office comes roughly three years and seven months after former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached earlier this year, moved it to the nondescript Defense Ministry building in Yongsan on the first day of his December 24, 2025
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  Namyang Dairy heiress arrested for alleged drug use after fleeing abroad SEOUL, December 24 (AJP) - Hwang Ha-na, the granddaughter of the founder of Namyang Dairy Products has been arrested after fleeing abroad, police said on Wednesday. According to police in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, Hwang, 37, arrived at Incheon International Airport earlier in the morning and is currently being questioned over drug-related allegations. She is suspected of having used methamphetamine with two acquaintances in southern Seoul in 2023, again coming under investigation December 24, 2025