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440 storiesDefense ministry to pursue cut, abolition of alternative service for arts, sports
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said on Oct 6 that it plans to ultimately pursue a reduction and abolition of supplementary military service, including arts and sports personnel, and to reflect it in the defense reform basic plan. Spokespers…
WHO and Russia say no further plague infections after Siberian lab worker's death
A female worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East died last week from pneumonia of undetermined origin, according to Russian authorities and the WHO. Russia's Rospotrebnadzor said 60% of the identified contact…
Korean doctors and parties seek rules after police search of pediatric ER
Police searched the pediatric emergency medical center at Ajou University Hospital on September 30 as part of an investigation into the July death of a five-month-old infant. The National Council of Medical School Professors and other medic…
Asian Games gold row widens as parties in South Korea seek exemption review
South Korea beat Japan 1-0 on October 3 to win a fourth consecutive Asian Games men's football gold, a result that exempts most of the squad from military service. A locker-room photo of Park Seung-su in a discharge hat, captain Lee Ki-hyuk…
South Korea's Lee orders CPTPP talks restarted from the beginning amid farm concerns
President Lee Jae-myung instructed at a cabinet meeting on Oct 6 that the government should not fix a conclusion on joining the CPTPP and should “restart dialogue from the beginning,” saying the pact's strategic value is cited alongside ver…
South Korea esports team wins five medals at Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games
South Korea’s esports national team won two gold, one silver and two bronze medals at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, the Korea Esports Association said on 6 October. League of Legends and the fighting-game squad both defended their titl…
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 …
Netherlands proposes civilian reserve of 150,000 for emergencies
The Netherlands has proposed creating a civilian reserve for crises, with RTL reporting a target of 150,000 reservists for emergency situations, according to TASS. The reported roles include drivers, security guards and mechanics. RBC repor…
Single Seoul apartment unit draws 68,663 applicants on near-1-billion-won gap
One 84㎡ unit at the 강변역 센트럴 아이파크 complex in Guui-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul drew 68,663 applications when it was offered on Oct 6, Newsis and Seoul Economic Daily reported, both citing the Korea Real Estate Board's Cheongyak Home portal. The …
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…
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…
Ulsan Ulju Hospital warns of rise in autumn centipede bites
Ulsan Ulju Hospital said on Oct 6 that it has been seeing a series of patients bitten by centipedes as autumn sets in, and urged the public to take precautions. The hospital described recent cases, including a person in their 50s bitten on …
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…
Two large Seoul churches show signs of cyberattack; member data feared leaked
An analysis by cyber threat intelligence company Oasis Security found evidence that two large South Korean churches were hit by cyberattacks, with member records, donation and accounting data and internal documents found on an overseas atta…
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…
WHO keeps low-risk view on Russian plague lab death; Russia denies accident
The World Health Organization said the public health risk to the general public appears low after a researcher at a plague research institute in Russia's Irkutsk region died following what reports described as a broken test tube of plague p…
President Lee vows to keep pledge to end “real estate speculation republic”
President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 in a post on X that his government will keep its promise to escape the “real estate speculation republic,” saying the country cannot be made to face a “lost 30 years” from real-estate bomb-passing even…
Citizen Watch says data of about 100,000 people may have leaked in contractor breach
Citizen Watch said on Oct 6 that personal information on about 100,000 people may have leaked after unauthorized access to a server run by an outside contractor. The access was to a server of Tokyo-based Scala Communications between the nig…