Boy, 15, was stabbed three times by masked men who also knifed his father in unprovoked midnight house raid as both fight for life in hospital

WASHINGTON — A senior U.S. official said Friday that Washington expects Seoul to "uphold" the standards of their decadeslong alliance, amid heightened concerns over apparent friction in the countries' intelligence cooperation. "We expect the ROK to uphold the standards of our decadeslong alliance, in particular concerning matters of intelligence and counterintelligence," the senior U.S. administration official told Yonhap News Agency in a written statement, referring to South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea. The statement was provided in response to an inquiry from Yonhap News Agency regarding the state of bilateral intelligence cooperation. The remarks follow growing speculation over bilateral friction after South Korea's National Intelligence Service acknowledged it was excluded from a June trilateral meeting, also involving Japan, on North Korean cyber threats. Local media reports indicated the agency was left out at Washington's request. South Korea and the United States have faced signs of friction in the intelligence field after Seoul Unification Minister Chung Dong-

North Korea on Saturday slammed a U.S. government report on its human trafficking situation as a "grave politically-motivated provocation" revealing Washington's "hostile" policy toward Pyongyang. The U.S. State Department released the 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report on Thursday (local time), placing North Korea in the lowest Tier 3 group of countries for anti-human trafficking efforts, alongside China, Russia, Iran and Cuba. It was the 24th consecutive year Pyongyang was placed in the category. "Recently the U.S. Department of State committed another grave politically-motivated provocation of malignantly slandering the DPRK through the '2026 Trafficking in Persons Report' which is full of lies, fabrications, prejudice and hostility," a spokesperson for North Korea's foreign ministry said in an English statement carried by the country's Korean Central News Agency. "This clearly proved once again the U.S. vicious and malicious intention to politicize and weaponize human rights and use them as the primary lever for its hostile policy toward the DPRK." DPRK stands for North Korea's offici

South Korea's ambassador to Ukraine returned home Saturday after being recalled in protest of Kyiv's disclosure of the transfer of North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) to Seoul, the foreign ministry said. Ambassador Park Ki-chang arrived two days after the foreign ministry announced the recall in response to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's disclosure of the transfer and Kyiv's subsequent denial that it had agreed with Seoul to keep the matter confidential. The two North Korean soldiers were captured in January 2025 while fighting for Russia in the Kursk region and arrived in South Korea in mid-September, according to officials here. Seoul has said a non-disclosure agreement was reached with Kyiv at Ukraine's request to protect the soldiers and their families, who remain in North Korea, and that Zelenskyy breached the agreement when he revealed the transfer during an address to the U.N. General Assembly in New York last month. Kyiv has said there was no such agreement. It is rare for the government to recall an ambassador as a form of protest, and the last time South Korea did so

National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik has held a series of meetings with Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic and Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic to seek energy and defense cooperation between the two nations, his office said Saturday. In a meeting with the Croatian president in Zagreb on Friday (local time), Cho said the two countries have been maintaining friendly, cooperative relations since establishing diplomatic ties in 1992, which were upgraded to a comprehensive, future-oriented partnership in 2023. Cho has been on a four-nation trip to Italy, Vatican City, Croatia and Greece over nine days. In a separate meeting with the Croatian prime minister, Cho also said the two countries should solidify their ties in the economy, culture, defense and energy sectors, highlighting a recent arms supply deal. Last month, South Korean defense firm Hanwha Aerospace signed a deal to export 18 Chunmoo multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) to Croatia in an arms contract worth some 640 billion won ($477 million), marking the first major arms deal between the tw

Rep. Na Kyung-won of the main opposition People Power Party clashed with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Saturday after the latter criticized her plan to send a letter thanking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) to South Korea. On Friday, Na said she would send Zelensky a letter expressing her deep gratitude for his “magnanimous decision” to allow the two POWs, identified by their surnames Ri and Paek, to be transferred to South Korea in accordance with their wishes. The plan drew strong criticism from the ruling party. Na hit back on Saturday, describing the ruling party's response as “absurd” and accusing DPK lawmakers of attacking her for expressing gratitude to the Ukrainian president. "After I announced that I would send a letter of thanks to the Ukrainian president for transferring the North Korean prisoners of war, DPK lawmakers rushed to attack me one after another, like a suicide squad," she wrote on Facebook. "Are they lawmakers of the Republic of Korea? Or are they members of the North Kore

Hong Kong police have arrested 127 people in a six-month undercover operation against a Vietnamese-led crime syndicate accused of running loan-sharking rackets charging interest rates of up to 3,700 per cent, as well as illegal gambling and unlicensed bars in West Kowloon. The syndicate is also alleged to have helped illegal immigrants find shelter and work, with police raiding eight premises on October 8 and 9. Among those arrested were 10 alleged core members, including the suspected leader, a...

It has emerged that thousands of pounds in free tickets, hospitality and foreign trips were given to the party's MPs - including VIP seats for the PM's right hand woman, Labour deputy leader Lucy Powell.

More than half of Americans believe President Donald Trump would refuse to accept a Republican defeat in November.

Senior public servants found accountable for last year’s deadly Tai Po fire could face disciplinary action if named in an investigation report that a government-appointed panel is expected to submit this month, Hong Kong’s civil service chief has said. Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan also said on Saturday that a support unit was being set up to assist the Public Service Commission if investigations into officials’ “administrative responsibilities” were eventually...

Frank, who ran Lee Gate Farm in North Yorkshire with his father and uncle, spoke honestly about his journey into farming and the financial straits the business was in during his last TV appearance.

The diesel pact between Mr Trump and Mr Putin stunned Kyiv, with the Ukrainian leader accusing the US president of 'weakness' in caving in to Mr Putin.

She earns $125,000, has $310,000 in retirement savings and $65,000 in the bank. But after divorce and raising two children, this 52-year-old still doesn't own a home. Vanessa explains her options.