South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed below 400 for the second straight day Monday, but health authorities remained alert over a continued rise in cluster infections ahead of the start of the spring school semester. The country reported 355 more COVID-19 cases, including 338 local infections, raising the total caseload to 90,029, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The tally was lower than the 356 recorded Sunday and 415 on Saturday. The fall in new cases l

South Koreans are set to mark the 102nd anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement with smaller, subdued commemorations on Monday as the nation is battling the coronavirus pandemic. The national holiday is usually observed with large ceremonies, processions and performances remembering the months of popular uprisings against Japan's colonial rule (1910-45), which started in Seoul on March 1, 1919. About 2 million people participated in the protests across the county and more than 7,500

Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, former Catholic archbishop of Seoul, has been hospitalized due to deteriorating health conditions, according to Catholic insiders Sunday. Cheong, 90, was recently admitted to a hospital and was receiving treatment, according to the sources familiar with the cardinal's situation. He has reportedly managed to overcome critical, life-threatening situations on multiple occasions. Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung, the current archbishop of Seoul, has reportedly noti

Portion of people aged 15-64 in steep decline

Punishment for sexual exploitation of teenagers also gets stronger

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Sunday it has identified another case of highly pathogenic bird flu traced to poultry farms, with the confirmed caseload staying at 103. The latest case of the deadly H5N8 strain of avian influenza was reported from an egg farm in Pocheon, 46 kilometers north of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. South Korea reported its first highly contagious bird flu case from farms since 2018 in November last year. Cases traced

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 400 on Sunday, partly due to fewer testing over the weekend, as the country launched its first mass vaccination campaign last week. The country reported 356 more virus cases, including 334 local infections, raising the total caseload to 89,676, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Sunday's daily caseload marks a decline from 415 tallied the previous day. The figure was gradually increasing throughout last week

The National Assembly has approved a law revision that would step up the punishment for perpetrators of fatal child abuse in the wake of a series of recent deaths of abused children. The bill to revise the act on child abuse crimes passed a plenary National Assembly session Friday. The revised law newly codifies the crime of child abuse homicide, stipulating the maximum capital punishment and a minimum seven-year imprisonment for perpetrators. Before the revision, the worst cases of child abu

Pfizer jabs to be given to over 55,000 workers at COVID-19 hospitals by mid-March

The home of Yi Cheon-bo can be found in a remote town in Gapyeong, a county not far from Seoul. Yi was a member of the Joseon Dynasty elite, spending all his adult life as a trusted adviser to the king. Privately, he was a poet who left behind eight collections. His verses were known for their wit and refreshing absence of pretense.  With faded ivory walls, bare wooden pillars and a slate-gray roof, Yi’s home bespeaks the beauty of moderation. The low stone fence is unthreatening, s

A medical professional extracts the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from a vial at the Dobong-gu public health center in northern Seoul on Friday morning. A health professional prepares the AstraZeneca vaccine on the first day of the COVID-19 vaccination program in Korea at the Geumcheon-gu public health center in southern Seoul. A health official prepares a COVID-19 vaccination at a nursing home in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. (Photos: Yonhap) By Yoon Chae-won (choenayoon@heraldcorp.com)

Nursing home workers in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, wait in line at the Heungkuk Gymnasium for the first round of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccination on Friday. Booths set up around the gymnasium are where medical workers administer the vaccinations. (Photos: Yonhap) By Song Donna (donnadsong@heraldcorp.com)

A group of 300 medical workers treating novel coronavirus patients started receiving the first batch of the vaccine developed by US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. in South Korea on Saturday, one day after the country kicked off a free vaccination campaign. Doctors, nurses and other health professionals treating COVID-19 patients in the greater Seoul area were administered with their first shots of Pfizer's two-dose vaccine regimen at a state-run vaccination facility in central Seoul. The in

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Saturday it is investigating yet another suspected case of highly pathogenic bird flu traced to poultry farms, with the confirmed caseload staying at 102. The latest suspected case of the deadly H5N8 strain of avian influenza was reported from an egg farm in Pocheon, 46 kilometers north of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. South Korea reported its first highly contagious bird flu case from farms since 2018 in Nove

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed above 400 on Saturday, the second day of mass vaccinations, as sporadic cluster infections continued to linger throughout the nation. The country reported 415 more virus cases, including 405 local infections, raising the total caseload to 89,321, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Saturday's daily caseload marks a rise from 406 tallied the previous day. The figure reached a weekly low of 332 on Monday, before g