Latest Pyongyang News

FILE - In this July 29, 2010, file photo, South Korean conservative activists launch balloons carrying leaflets denouncing North Korean leader Kim Jong Il during a rally in Hwacheon, South Korea. South Korea says it plans to push new laws to ban activists from flying anti-Pyongyang leaflets over the border after North Korea threatened to end an inter-Korean military agreement reached in 2018 to reduce tensions if Seoul fails to prevent the protests. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

Seoul vows to stop border protests after Pyongyang's threat

Jun. 4, 2020 3:11 AM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea said Thursday it planned to push new laws to ban activists from flying anti-Pyongyang leaflets over the border after North Korea threatened to end an inter-Korean military agreement reached in 2018 to reduce tensions if Seoul fails to prevent the protests. The...

People stand in a queue to book bus tickets to travel to places outside the state in Kolkata, in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, Wednesday, June 3, 2020. More states opened up and crowds of commuters trickled onto the roads in many of India's cities on Monday as a three-phase plan to lift the nationwide coronavirus lockdown began despite an upward trend in new infections. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)

Asia Today: S. Korea opening schools despite spike in cases

Jun. 3, 2020 7:57 AM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea on Wednesday reported 49 new cases of COVID-19, continuing a weekslong resurgence of the virus as the government defended its decision to reopen schools despite health risks. The figures announced by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on brought...

South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks during a meeting of his senior secretaries at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 27, 2020. Moon repeated an offer to conduct some inter-Korean cooperation projects such as a joint anti-coronavirus quarantine campaign. Moon also said he will strive for mutual prosperity

The Latest: South Korea prez says surge no reason to panic

May. 9, 2020 11:14 PM EDT

The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. TOP OF THE HOUR: — South Korea president says citizens shouldn't panic over...

Cemetery workers wearing hazmat suits bury the coffin containing the remains of 71-year-old Neide Rodrigues Rosa, who died from the new coronavirus according to her son Sergio Rodrigues, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, May 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

The Latest: Pakistan lifts lockdown amid jump in virus cases

May. 9, 2020 1:05 AM EDT

The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. TOP OF THE HOUR: — Pakistan begins lifting weeks-long lockdown despite another...

FILE- In this Oct. 11, 2010, file photo, residents queue up at a store to buy food in Pyongyang, North Korea. The coronavirus pandemic appears to be taking a heavy toll on North Korea, forcing its leader Kim Jong Un to sharply shrink his public activities and his people to go on panic buying of daily necessities, South Korea's spy agency told lawmaker Wednesday, May 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu, File)

Seoul reports panic buying in N Korea amid economic woes

May. 6, 2020 4:53 AM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic has likely taken a heavy toll on North Korea, forcing leader Kim Jong Un to avoid public activities and his people into panic buying for daily necessities, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers Wednesday. Although North Korea has taken intense...

In this photo released by Russian Embassy in the DPRK/Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, Russian Ambassador to Democratic People's Republic of Korea Alexander Matsegora, left, and Democratic People's Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon, foreground right, both wearing face masks to protect against coronavirus, attend a ceremony of awarding North Korean leader Kim Jong-un with Russia's 75th anniversary Victory medal for his major contribution in commemorating Soviet soldiers, who died in 1945 during Korea's liberation, at the Mansudae Palace of Congress in Pyongyang, North Korea. Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Kim Jong Un a commemorative war medal marking the 75th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany. (Russian Embassy in the DPRK/Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service via AP)

Putin awards commemorative WWII medal to Kim Jong Un

May. 5, 2020 5:03 AM EDT

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Kim Jong Un a commemorative war medal marking the 75th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany, the Russian embassy in Pyongyang said Tuesday. The medal was awarded to the North Korean leader for his role in preserving the memory of Soviet...

ADDING CITY - In this Friday, May 1, 2020, photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, visits a fertilizer factory in Sunchon, South Pyongan province, near Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim made his first public appearance in 20 days as he celebrated the completion of the fertilizer factory, state media said Saturday, May 2, 2020, ending an absence that had triggered global rumors that he may be seriously ill. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads:

South Korea: Kim did not have surgery amid lingering rumors

May. 3, 2020 6:48 AM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did not undergo surgery or any other medical procedure, a South Korean official said Sunday, amid speculation about his health that continues to linger even after he reappeared publicly in recent days. North Korea had said Saturday that Kim attended...

ADDS CITY AND ID OF WOMAN - In this Friday, May 1, 2020, photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, cuts a tape, watched by his sister Kim Yo Jong, during his visit to a fertilizer factory in Sunchon, South Pyongan province, near Pyongyang, North Korea. Kim made his first public appearance in 20 days as he celebrated the completion of the fertilizer factory, state media said Saturday, May 2, 2020, ending an absence that had triggered global rumors that he may be seriously ill. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads:

Kim reappears in public, ending absence amid health rumors

May. 2, 2020 7:03 PM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in 20 days as he celebrated the completion of a fertilizer factory near Pyongyang, state media said Saturday, ending an absence that had triggered global rumors that he may be seriously ill. The North’s...

FILE - In this undated file photo provided by the North Korean government on April 12, 2020, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects an air defense unit in western area, North Korea. Kim's prolonged public absence has led to rumors of ill health and worries about how it could influence the future of what one analyst calls Northeast Asia's

Questions over Kim's health highlight intelligence limits

Apr. 27, 2020 11:03 PM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's prolonged public absence has led to rumors of ill health and worries about how it could influence the future of what one analyst calls Northeast Asia's “Achilles’ heel,” a reference to the North's belligerence and...

FILE - In this undated file photo provided by the North Korean government on April 12, 2020, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects an air defense unit in western area, North Korea. The South Korean government is looking into reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in fragile condition after surgery. Officials from South Korea’s Unification Ministry and National Intelligence Service couldn’t immediately confirm the reports citing an anonymous U.S. official who said Kim was in “grave danger.” Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads:

South Korea downplays concerns over Kim Jong Un's health

Apr. 21, 2020 8:42 PM EDT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean officials reported no unusual activity in North Korea on Tuesday following unconfirmed media reports that leader Kim Jong Un was in fragile health after surgery. But the possibly of high-level instability raised troubling questions about the future of a nuclear-armed...

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