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715 storiesSouth Korean court acquits former president Yoon Suk Yeol in political funds appeal
The Seoul High Court acquitted former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol on October 7 in the appeal of a case under the Political Funds Act, overturning his first-instance conviction. Prosecutors had alleged he and his wife Kim Keon Hee r…
Former Sochi mayor Kopaygorodsky sentenced to 15 years in strict-regime colony
A Moscow court sentenced former Sochi mayor Alexey Kopaygorodsky to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony, fined him 500 million rubles and stripped him of a state award in a corruption case. His wife, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya, was also co…
Japan protests after U.S. Marine is arrested over killing of woman in Okinawa
Japanese police have arrested U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, on suspicion of robbing and killing Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in Naha, Okinawa, police say. Japan lodged a strong protest with the United States, and Prime Minist…
Russia drops “fake army news” case against hospice founder Moniava
Russia's Investigative Committee has closed the criminal case against Lida Moniava, founder of the Dom s Mayakom children's hospice and charity fund, for lack of corpus delicti, her lawyer and support group said on 6 October. She had been c…
Russian anti-plague lab researcher dies; US and EU say they are monitoring
A 28-year-old female researcher at the Irkutsk anti-plague research institute in Shelekhov, Russia, died after being diagnosed with pneumonia of unknown cause, the state agency Rospotrebnadzor said. About 200 people who may have had contact…
Korea police open formal probe into AI-linked hacking of financial firms
South Korean police have converted their investigation into a series of AI-linked hacking attacks on financial institutions into a formal probe, assigning a 28-member, four-team dedicated unit. Data leaks have been confirmed at seven financ…
Christa Pike regains consciousness after failed Tennessee execution
Christa Pike, an American woman who survived a failed execution attempt in Tennessee, has regained consciousness, according to reports cited by RBC. TASS reported that she is conscious, speaking and receiving medical care. Her lawyers descr…
MrMax says breach may have leaked data of up to 1,735,154 members
MrMax Holdings said on October 6 that unauthorized access to servers for its MrMax app and online store may have exposed personal information of up to 1,735,154 members. The company said member IDs, names, email addresses and telephone numb…
Daiwa Securities: vendor breach may have exposed data of 110,000 customers
Daiwa Securities said on Oct 5 that a server at outsourcing vendor Scalar Communications was subject to unauthorized access and that about 220,000 records may have leaked, including names, email addresses and securities account numbers for …
Defense minister: arts, sports military service exemption to be cut and abolished
South Korea's defense minister said on Oct 7 that the goal is to gradually reduce the arts and sports military service exemption and ultimately abolish it, after controversy over remarks by Asian Games football gold medallists about the exe…
Okinawa police send US Marine to prosecutors over Naha hotel robbery-murder
Okinawa prefectural police arrested US Marine lance corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, of Futenma base, on suspicion of robbing and killing a 39-year-old woman at a hotel in Naha, and sent him to the Naha district prosecutors’ office on Oct …
Ex-CIA official found with gold bars pleads guilty to $194 million fraud
David J. Rush, a former senior CIA official, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, to one count of wire fraud in a scheme prosecutors say cost the federal government about $194 million. Prosecutors said Rush fabri…
Yoido Full Gospel Church says data of 850,000 members may have leaked in cyberattack
Yoido Full Gospel Church, South Korea's largest church, said data on about 850,000 members — names and dates of birth — may have been exposed after a cyberattack on its information system. The church said it was notified by the Korea Intern…
US Marine arrested in Naha hotel killing; Japan protests, Okinawa governor speaks out
A 20-year-old US Marine was arrested on suspicion of robbery-murder after a 39-year-old woman was found dead at a hotel in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, and Japanese officials protested to the US side. Foreign Ministry Senior Deputy Minister Ta…
Korea financial regulator orders full security review after bank data leaks
Financial Services Commission Chairman Lee Eok-won chaired an emergency meeting of the entire financial sector in Seoul on Oct. 4 after customer data leaks spread from major banks to non-bank lenders, saying the possibility of AI-enabled ha…
Christa Pike conscious and speaking after failed Tennessee execution, lawyers say
Christa Pike, 50, is conscious and speaking and receiving critical medical care nearly a week after Tennessee's attempt to execute her with the drug pentobarbital failed, her attorneys said Tuesday. They said her prognosis remains unclear, …
Regulator identifies 19 attacker IPs in 12 countries in Korean bank hacking case
South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service has identified 19 IP addresses suspected of being used in hacking attacks on financial companies, spread across 12 countries including the United States, Japan and Hong Kong (China). The regulator…
South Korea re-designates 92 population decline regions, adding Busan Geumjeong, Dongducheon and Tongyeong
South Korea's Ministry of the Interior and Safety re-designated 92 cities, counties and districts as population decline regions on Oct. 7, up from 89 in the first designation five years ago. Busan's Geumjeong-gu, Gyeonggi's Dongducheon and …
Trump signs order allowing tax-free red-dyed diesel on highways
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday temporarily allowing off-road red-dyed diesel to be used for highway driving and deferring the federal excise tax on that fuel through the end of 2026 without interest or penalties.…
Russia quarantines hospital as lab worker’s death puts nearly 200 under observation
A female employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East died last week of pneumonia of unknown cause, Russian authorities said, and a hospital in the town of Shelekhov was placed under quarantine. Officia…