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Sejong University held a ceremony Sept. 4 to welcome back members of its World Friends Korea (WFK) IT Sejong Overseas Volunteer Corps, the university said. The event was held to share the results of the volunteers’ activities in Jizzakh, Uzbekistan, last month and recognize the students who took part in educational and cultural exchange programs. The WFK-IT Volunteer Corps, organized by the National Information Society Agency, is a program that seeks to bridge the global digital divide by providing information technology education and carrying out projects in partner countries with limited access to digital technologies, while helping Korean IT talent develop global capabilities. Sejong University was selected in April to operate the WFK-IT Volunteer Corps this year and formed its volunteer team under the leadership of the Sejong Community Service Foundation and the National Program of Excellence in Software. The volunteer corps provided customized IT education and organized Korean cultural exchange activities in Jizzakh from Aug. 1-17. During the first week, the volunteers provided bas

Several translation errors were found in a Ministry of National Defense glossary meant to help soldiers unfamiliar with the Korean language, raising questions about the ministry's vetting process as the number of troops from multicultural backgrounds continues to grow. In August, the ministry said it had compiled the glossary to explain 562 common military terms such as "salute" and "roll call" for soldiers with overseas permanent residency and those from multicultural backgrounds. The words, compiled from observations of a soldier's daily routine, were translated into English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish and Japanese, posted on the Military Manpower Administration's website and distributed in print to new recruits. But the glossary was plagued with translation errors. In the English version, the Korean word for "petty officer" was mistranslated as "pretty officer." The Korean word meaning "checking the chamber for rounds after firing" was rendered instead as "Weather conditions such as rain, snow, or strong winds that restrict activities," an unrelated sentence about the weather. The te

Multiple helicopters flew over the Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Tuesday evening, prompting unease among some nearby residents as it coincided with President Lee Jae Myung’s trip to New York. The flights were part of a nighttime training exercise conducted by the Capital Defense Command, according to the Ministry of National Defense. The ministry explained that such drills are occasionally held when the president is outside the country. The ministry had not responded to further questions about the details, such as the number of helicopters involved and the specific purpose and flight routes of the exercise. Although it was a drill, the fact that an unusually large number of helicopters were mobilized and were flying after sunset drew unease among residents nearby. The uneasiness was partially because of the memory of the Dec. 3, 2025, martial law imposition by then-President Yoon Suk Yeol, when a dozen helicopters flew to the National Assembly in Yeouido to arrest opposition leaders. A resident living near Cheong Wa Dae said the chopper noise was unusually frequent and loud compared with n

The number of babies born in Korea rose 11.1 percent in July from a year earlier, marking the 25th consecutive month of increases, government data showed Wednesday. A total of 24,275 babies were born in July, up from 21,854 a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics. It marked the highest figure for any July since 25,222 recorded in 2019. The country's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, rose 0.08 from a year earlier to 0.89 in July. The rate remains well below the 2.1 births per woman needed to maintain a stable population without immigration. The number of births has maintained an upward trajectory since July 2024. Over the January-July period, 170,079 babies were born, up 14.7 percent from a year earlier. It was the highest figure for the period since 2019. The recent rebound came amid a growing number of marriages, an increase in the population in their 30s and more positive attitudes toward having children. The number of marriages in July rose 9.3 percent from a year earlier to 22,282. The number of di

The number of Koreans who moved to new residences decreased in August from a year earlier amid a recent decline in housing transactions, data showed Wednesday. Around 471,000 people changed residences in August, down 22,000 from a year earlier, according to data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics. It was the lowest figure for any August in 53 years since the 420,000 recorded in 1973. The population mobility rate — the number of people relocating per 100 residents -- fell 0.5 percentage point from a year earlier to 10.9 percent. The data ministry attributed the decrease to declines in housing transactions and new home supplies. "The number of homes traded in June and July totaled 132,000, down 4.4 percent from a year earlier. Over the same period, the number of apartment units completed came to 43,000, down 29.1 percent," an official from the data ministry said. By region, Seoul reported a net outflow of 2,901 people, while South Gyeongsang Province and the southwestern Jeonnam-Gwangju area posted net outflows of 1,230 and 1,081, respectively. In contrast, Gyeonggi Province reported

Former first lady Kim Keon Hee on Wednesday appealed an appellate ruling sentencing her to five years in prison on bribery-related charges, taking the case to the Supreme Court, legal sources said. The Seoul High Court convicted Kim, the wife of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, on charges of accepting bribes for mediation in a Tuesday ruling that partially overturned a lower court's seven-year sentence. A special counsel team earlier indicted Kim on charges of receiving various expensive gifts from multiple people in return for job appointments and business favors between 2022 and 2023. While a district court convicted her on all counts in June, the appellate court acquitted her of charges of receiving a luxury watch and a replica of a Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) painting. The special counsel team has also indicated that it plans to take the case to the top court.

The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) said Wednesday it has sent part of the results of its inspection into the state election watchdog to the special prosecutor team investigating ballot shortages in June's local elections. The BAI conducted a financial audit of the National Election Commission (NEC) from July 6 to Aug. 28 to look into whether there were any irregularities that could have contributed to the unprecedented shortages of voting papers in the June 3 elections. The results have not yet been made public. The data handed over to the independent counsel team involved six cases related to budget execution for major elections, including interference with bidding, unfair private contracts, and wrongful inspections, as they were deemed to require a swift investigation, the BAI said. The BAI did not disclose further details. The agency explained that it decided to share the data ahead of the official audit announcement because the special prosecutor team has only 150 days to investigate the case and related materials should be provided in time.

Korea, Britain, France and five other nations from Europe and the Indo-Pacific have warned that disruption of sea lanes, including the Strait of Hormuz, is unacceptable and vowed to stand together in addressing shared challenges, Seoul's foreign ministry said Wednesday. The foreign ministers and high-level representatives of the European and Indo-Pacific Partners (EIPP) — Korea, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Poland and Britain — made the call in a joint statement following a meeting in New York on Tuesday, according to the ministry. The meeting, the second of its kind, was held on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly amid the prolonged conflict in the Middle East and growing disruptions to maritime security. "Disruption of sea lanes, including the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab-el-Mandab Strait, whether by force, threat or the introduction of unlawful tolls or conditions for transit, threatens security and prosperity of all, especially the world's most vulnerable, and are unacceptable," the statement said. "We call on all countries to speak out wh

The annual exodus for Chuseok, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving, began Wednesday as Koreans headed to their hometowns for family reunions and took trips during the extended holiday. This year's four-day Chuseok holiday runs from Thursday to Sunday. Traditionally, Koreans return to their hometowns during Chuseok to reunite with family members and pay respects at their ancestors' graves. Traffic congestion already began building on major expressways across the country on Wednesday afternoon, as Chuseok traffic increased, according to Korea Expressway Corp. The company said traffic would be heavier than usual Wednesday, with 6.13 million vehicles expected to be on the roads throughout the day. The company estimated that 510,000 vehicles would travel from the Seoul metropolitan area to other regions, while 450,000 would travel in the opposite direction. It expects the 420-kilometer drive from Seoul to the southeastern city of Busan, for instance, to take about seven hours and 30 minutes. An expressway trip from Seoul to the southwestern city of Gwangju would take six hours and 50 minutes

Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul met with the top U.S. envoy to Korea on Wednesday to discuss key alliance issues, such as the wartime operational control (OPCON) transition and the relocation of a regional air base shared with U.S. forces, the defense ministry said. The meeting with U.S. Ambassador Michelle Steel follows Kang's swearing-in on Tuesday, as Washington and Seoul face a host of shared security issues, with the OPCON transition from the United States high on the agenda. "The two sides discussed key pending issues, including the OPCON transition and the Gwangju military airport (relocation), and agreed to closely communicate to advance bilateral alliance in a future-oriented and mutually beneficial manner," the ministry said in a release. Seoul is seeking to retake OPCON from Washington before the Lee Jae Myung administration's five-year term ends in 2030, or even as early as next year. However, concerns are growing over a divide between the allies regarding the transfer timeline, as Washington remains cautious about a rushed transition. The Lee government is also pushing to re

In an effort to curb market manipulation and enforce fair rules across all home buyers, land and transport officials in Korea have launched an expanded review of real estate transactions involving overseas capital. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Wednesday that it is currently investigating 840 residential and commercial property transactions conducted by foreign nationals between June 2025 and July 2026. The national inquiry, set to conclude in December, builds on regulatory measures first introduced in 2022 to prevent systemic loopholes that allow unverified foreign funds to bypass domestic lending limits and tax oversight. By expanding review parameters under a revised decree of the Real Estate Transactions Act, authorities are scrutinizing a broader dataset. Inspectors are now verifying whether purchase capital originated from foreign stock sales, cryptocurrency liquidations or overseas loans, while also cross-referencing visa categories to identify unauthorized rental businesses operated by short-term visitors. The crackdowns respond directly to public conce

Seoul Seobuk Hospital, a public health care hub in western Seoul's Eunpyeong District, transformed its wards into training grounds for international health officials this month, offering visiting delegations from Denmark and Kenya a firsthand look at Korea’s approaches to dementia care, tuberculosis control and palliative care. The hospital hosted Danish elder care policy experts on Sept. 10, followed by 17 Kenyan Ministry of Health officials on Sept. 17, as part of a series of exchanges focused on public health care in Seoul. The Danish delegation examined Seobuk Hospital’s dementia ward, including its admission procedures, caregiver-support rooms, nonpharmacological treatment programs and links between discharged patients and community services. The delegation included Danish elder care policy expert Dr. Jacob Høj Jørgensen, whose name has also appeared in recent Korean reports on Danish elder care policy, along with other officials. Visitors toured the ward’s central garden, Snoezelen multisensory room, patient rooms and program spaces and observed a music-based care program,