Category Archives: South Korea

South Korea spends millions to rescue World Scout Jamboree amid scorching heatwave

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President says ‘unlimited’ airconditioned buses will be provided and food will be improved, after hundreds fall ill in heat amid soaring temperatures

South Korea has pumped millions into improving conditions at a global Scouts gathering it is hosting amid a suffocating heatwave, with president Yoon Suk Yeol ordering “unlimited” air-conditioned buses and cold-water trucks and hundreds more sanitary and medical staff being brought in.

The World Scout Jamboree, which kicked off on 8.8 sq km of unsheltered tidelands in the south-western county of Buan on Tuesday, has seen hundreds needing treatment for heat-related ailments. On Thursday, 138 people visited clinics and hospitals with heat-related illnesses, bringing the total tally to over 700.

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Heatwave sees hundreds fall ill at World Scout Jamboree in South Korea

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At least 400 require treatment for heat-related symptoms on first day of global event attracting more than 40,000 young people from 158 countries

Hundreds of attendees at the World Scout Jamboree in South Korea have fallen ill as the country grapples with an extended heatwave affecting large swathes of the country.

The event, which started earlier this week, has drawn 43,000 young Scouts from 158 countries this year. By the end of the first day, Tuesday, officials had counted at least 400 patients who needed treatment for heat-related symptoms such as headaches, dizziness and exhaustion. On Wednesday, a further 207 heat-related cases emerged.

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Teenager among 15 heat-related deaths as Japan and South Korea swelter

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In South Korea, 12 people died from heat-related deaths last weekend, while in Japan, three people died including a 13 year-old on her way back from school

Twelve people have died from heat-related causes in South Korea as it swelters through a heatwave, while in Japan it emerged a 13-year-old girl had died from heatstroke on her way back from a school club.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that at least five of those who died over the weekend were farmers, and at least seven were over 70, including some in their 90s. Most of the country has been under a heatwave warning – issued when temperatures pass 35C – since Tuesday. Over the previous week, three people are believed to have died from heat-related causes.

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North Korea fires missiles into sea hours after US submarine arrives in the South

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South Korean armed forces condemn the two launches as a ‘grave provocation’

North Korea has fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, adding to a recent streak of weapons testing that is apparently in protest against the US sending naval assets to South Korea.

In its third round of launches since last week, North Korea fired the missiles from an area near its capital, Pyongyang, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said early on Tuesday local time. It said the missiles travelled about 250 miles (400km) before landing in waters off the Korean peninsula’s eastern coast.

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How brutal heat is breaking records everywhere from the US to Japan

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Temperatures reached as high as 53.3C in the US and flooding hit South Korea and India

A remote township in the north-western region of Xinjiang set a Chinese record of 52.2C (125.9F) on Sunday – in a country that was battling -50C weather six months ago. Sanbao is in the Turpan Depression, an arid basin of sand dunes and dried-up lakes where 50.3C was recorded in 2015. Beijing topped its record for high-temperature days in a year on Tuesday, with 27 days above 35C. The temperature in its southern suburbs soared even higher on Wednesday to 36.3C.

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North Korea fails to answer entreaties about US soldier who crossed border

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Travis King had finished prison term in South Korea for assault and was supposed to be returning to Texas

North Korea is not responding to US attempts to discuss the American soldier who crossed the heavily armed border and whose prospects for a quick release are unclear when military tensions are high and communication channels inactive.

Pte Travis King, who was supposed to be heading to Fort Bliss, Texas, after finishing a prison sentence in South Korea for assault, ran into North Korea while on a civilian tour of the border village of Panmunjom on Tuesday. He is the first known American to be held in North Korea in nearly five years.

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US soldier detained by North Korea after crossing border during visit to DMZ

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US and UN officials working to ‘resolve incident’ after private crossed border at truce village without authorisation

An American soldier being sent back to the US to face possible disciplinary action crossed in to North Korea during a tour of the demilitarised zone, US officials have said, becoming the first American detained in the North in nearly five years.

Private 2nd Class Travis King had served nearly two months in a South Korean prison for assault before being released to be sent home to Fort Bliss, Texas, on Monday, where he potentially faced additional military disciplinary actions and discharge from the service.

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Extreme heatwave live: Texas city confirms first heat death; northern hemisphere boils in severe weather – as it happened

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Man in Houston died in house without air conditioning; mercury in parts of Italy is close to hitting 45C as wildfires ravage Greece and Spain

South Korean president blames botched responses for rising death toll

South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol has blamed authorities’ failure to follow disaster response rules as the death toll from days of torrential rain grew to 39, including a dozen people found dead in a submerged underpass.

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South Korea floods: president urges climate crisis action as death toll hits 40

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President Yoon Suk Yeol calls for overhaul of national preparedness as extreme weather becomes ‘commonplace’

Rescuers in South Korea have recovered a total of 13 bodies from a flooded road tunnel in a central city, as the death toll from flash floods and landslides triggered by days of heavy rain rose to at least 40 on Monday.

The devastation prompted the country’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, to warn that the climate crisis had made extreme weather a fact of life.

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South Korea floods leave dozens dead as rescuers scramble to find tunnel victims

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Bodies recovered from underpass as downpours trigger landslides and force evacuation of thousands

Rescuers in South Korea are battling to reach people trapped in a flooded tunnel, while at least 37 people have died after heavy rains caused flooding and landslides.

South Korea is at the peak of its summer monsoon season and there has been heavy rainfall for the last four days, causing a major dam to overflow.

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South Korean president makes surprise visit to Ukraine in show of support

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Yoon Suk-yeol, whose country gives humanitarian and financial aid but not arms, laid flowers at monument to war dead

The South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol, made a surprise visit to Ukraine on Saturday, in an apparent show of support for the country in its war with Russia.

Yoon travelled to Ukraine with his wife, Kim Keon-hee, after trips to Lithuania for a Nato summit and to Poland, his office said. It is his first visit since Russia invaded Ukraine almost 17 months ago.

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North Korea fires ballistic missile towards Japan

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Rocket went 1,000km, says South Korea, after Kim Jong-un’s sister threatened ‘shocking’ consequences for alleged US spy plane flights

North Korea fired a ballistic missile off its east coast towards Japan on Wednesday, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said, in a move that followed threats of retaliation for alleged US spy plane flights.

The missile flew about 1,000km (621 miles) before crashing into the water, South Korea’s military said. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary said the missile came down about 250km west of Okushiri island in Japan’s northernmost Hokkaido prefecture, after a flight taking 74 minutes that reached an altitude of more than 6,000km.

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K-pop megastars BTS release keenly awaited memoir

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Fans of boyband brave heavy rain to gather at Seoul bookshop for Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS

The K-pop megastars BTS have released their hotly anticipated memoir in South Korea, marking their 10th anniversary as a group.

Beyond the Story: 10-Year Record of BTS is the group’s first official book, and contains a chronological summary of their musical career as well as hints at their future endeavours.

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South Koreans confront IAEA chief over Fukushima water release

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Rafael Grossi met with protests in Seoul during visit to try to calm fears over radioactive water discharge

Protesters have confronted the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog during a visit to South Korea in an attempt to calm fears over Japan’s plan to discharge treated radioactive water from its Fukushima plant.

Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, arrived in Seoul on Friday to meet the foreign minister and a top nuclear safety official during a three-day visit after his trip to Japan.

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UN report on Japan’s Fukushima water plans fails to placate opponents

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While South Korea offers official support, China and other voices in region continue to express concerns over discharge from nuclear plant

The publication this week of the UN nuclear watchdog’s positive assessment of Japanese plans to pump more than 1m tonnes of water from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the ocean has failed to placate opponents.

China is fiercely opposed to the plans, despite a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) backing the scheme, while the support of the government of South Korea has failed to quell widespread public opposition to the idea in the country.

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South Korea: doctors desert paediatrics as low birth rate sparks fears for future

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Shortage of children’s doctors has led to long waiting lists, clinic closures and even prompted prospective parents to think again

A shortage of paediatricians in South Korea is leaving hospitals unable to fill posts while raising risks for children’s health, doctors have said, claiming that the shortage is both a result of the world’s lowest birthrate and increasingly a factor behind it.

The number of paediatric clinics and hospitals in the capital, Seoul, has fallen by 12.5% over the five years to 2022, to just 456. Over the same period, the number of psychiatry clinics increased by 76.8%, while anaesthesiology centres saw a 41.2% rise, according to the Seoul Institute, a public administration thinktank.

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North Korea holds key meeting as US sends nuclear submarine to South Korea

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Kim Jong-un attended the conference to review defence strategies and the country’s struggling economy

North Korea opened a key political conference with leader Kim Jong-un in attendance to discuss improving its struggling economy and reviewing defence strategies in the face of growing tensions with rivals, according to state media reports.

The enlarged plenary meeting of the ruling Workers’ party’s central committee came as the US sent a nuclear-powered submarine to South Korea in the allies’ latest show of force against the North, which has ramped up its testing of nuclear-capable missiles to a record pace in recent months.

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Police arrest British man free-climbing South Korean skyscraper

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Man identified locally as George King-Thompson, who was previously jailed after free-climbing London’s Shard

A British man, previously jailed after free-climbing the Shard in London, has reportedly been arrested in South Korea after attempting to climb the country’s tallest skyscraper without equipment, police said.

The man was scaling the 123-storey Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul early on Monday when staff spotted him, forcing him to stop his ascent as he reached the 73rd floor.

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South Korea’s first ever same-sex marriage bill goes to parliament

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Symbolic bill sponsored by cross-party group of lawmakers is hailed a ‘historic moment’ in fight for marriage equality

Lawmakers in South Korea have proposed the country’s first same-sex marriage bill, in a move hailed by civic groups as a defining moment in the fight for equality.

The marriage equality bill, proposed by Jang Hye-yeong of the minor opposition Justice party and co-sponsored by 12 lawmakers across all the main parties, seeks to amend the country’s civil code to include persons of the same sex in marriage.

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