Via a reader tip comes news that North Korea has supposedly expanded the number of laws they can execute you for. I think all foreign tourists contemplating visiting North Korea need to keep this in mind:
North Korea is expanding its list of crimes punishable by death, according to reports.
Supreme leader Kim Jong Un’s regime expanded the list of offenses warranting the death penalty from 11 to 16 via revisions of criminal law, according to Yonhap News Agency.
New offenses warranting execution as a punishment include: anti-state propaganda and agitation acts, illegal manufacturing, and the illicit use of weapons are included in the new codes.
It looks like Handbag-gate is officially over. The Korean leftists will need to find some other issue to try and jail the first lady for:
Prosecutors decided Wednesday not to charge first lady Kim Keon Hee in connection with her acceptance of a luxury bag from a Korean American pastor in 2022.
The prosecution announced the decision following a monthslong investigation into allegations that the first lady illegally received a Dior handbag worth 3 million won (US$2,275) and other expensive items from the pastor at her office in 2022 in exchange for favors.
Korean American pastor Choi Jae-young secretly filmed the meeting with a hidden camera, and the video was later published by an online news media outlet in November last year, prompting the main opposition party to push for a special counsel probe.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office made its final decision Wednesday to clear Kim of charges that she violated the anti-graft law, concluding that the gifts she received were not related to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s official duties and that no favors were given in return.
The Japanese are responding to recent Chinese provocations into their ADIZ and EEZ with sailing through the Taiwan Strait:
A Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait for the first time on Wednesday, according to a local media report. The destroyer JS Sazanami, along with Australian and New Zealand vessels, sailed south from the East China Sea and through the 110-mile-wide channel separating the island from mainland China, Kyodo News reported, citing an unnamed source who was “familiar with the matter.” The ships were believed to be headed to the South China Sea to participate in exercises, the report said.
Firefighting robot This photo provided by Hyundai Motor Group on Sept. 26, 2024, shows a rendered image of its envisioned unmanned firefighting robot for underground parking lot fires. (Yonhap)
The Air Force is finally releasing their new PT uniform, but they are still struggling to design a long sleeve shirt and a sweatshirt:
After a two-year delay, the Air Force anticipates the new gender-specific uniform for physical training to be available on a limited basis in November. The PT uniform — short-sleeve shirt, running shorts, all-purpose shorts and warm-up suit — was originally scheduled for release in 2022, Air Force spokeswoman Ciara Travis told Stars and Stripes by email Thursday.
The uniform is now expected in November at select Army and Air Force Exchange Service locations in the continental United States, she said. When the Air Force announced the new uniform back in 2021, it planned on a four-year transition before it became mandatory wear.
Travis did not say when the new workout clothing would be available at bases overseas. Some optional items, including a long-sleeve shirt and sweatshirt, are in development and will be available later, she said. “That process took longer than expected,” she said.
Electric vehicle-only plant This photo provided by Kia Motors on Sept. 27, 2024, shows the first electric vehicle-only plant of the Hyundai Motor Group in Gwangmyeong on the southwestern outskirts of Seoul. The plant, named “Gwangmyeong EVO Plant,” was dedicated on the day.
Just another example of Korea’s expanding cultural influence even within the Catholic religion:
A mosaic depicting the Virgin Mary dressed in the traditional Korean outfit of “hanbok” was unveiled in the Vatican Gardens on Friday, marking the first time a Korean artwork has been installed in the historic site.
The “Korean Virgin Mary of Peace” mosaic, measuring 100 by 150 centimeters, was installed as part of a collection of Virgin Mary mosaics from around the world on the “Bastione Maestro,” a wall that serves as the border of Vatican City.
The mosaic, which shows the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus dressed in hanbok, is intended to symbolize a hope for peace and an end to war, according to artists Shim Soon-hwa and Yun Hae-young, who created the piece.
Now we know what caused a USFK F-16 to crash this past December:
The crash of an Air Force fighter jet off South Korea’s western coast last year was due to the loss of instrumentation and poor weather, according to a 7th Air Force news release Friday. The F-16C Fighting Falcon was over the Yellow Sea on Dec. 11 when it crashed “due to loss of primary flight and navigation instruments during adverse weather conditions,” the release states. The fighter belonged to the 8th Fighter Wing at Kunsan Air Base, 115 miles south of Seoul.
The pilot survived the crash although the aircraft was a total loss, according to 7th Air Force. The Accident Investigation Board found that the F-16’s loss of flight and navigation instruments was prompted by the failure of an embedded GPS inertial navigation system. That system’s failure, along with the unidentified pilot’s reliance on other indicators that showed inaccurate readings, led to “spatial disorientation,” according to the release.
