Author: GIKorea

It looks like things really are returning back to normal in post-COVID North Korea:

North Korea is witnessing an escalation in terror, as the totalitarian state has increasingly relied on public executions, a move by its dictator Kim Jong-un to strengthen his grip over national governance.

According to reports citing an informed source with insights into North Korean internal affairs, the number of public executions has been massively increased. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea saw an average of about 10 public executions annually, but over the past year, this number has surged to an estimated 100 or more.

During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea took measures to reduce public executions significantly in a bid to prevent the spread of infections. However, with the pandemic subsiding and human interactions increasing, these gruesome acts have resurged.

“North Korea public executions occur relatively frequently,” Cheong Seong-chang, director of the Department of Reunification Strategy Studies at the Sejong Institute, said.

“These executions cover a wide range of cases, including heinous crimes, drug smuggling, and, in rare instances, individuals caught producing and selling prohibited content, including South Korean dramas.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This lawmaker had to get a whole decade of suicide death data to reach this 144 number which to me does not seem very high considering the huge population of teachers in South Korea. This number would be more meaningful compared to other professions with similar numbers of employees. For example how many truck drivers or delivery workers have committed suicide over the past decade?:

Wreaths of condolence flowers are laid in front of an elementary school in the central city of Daejeon in this file photo taken Sept. 8, 2023, after a teacher there died by an apparent suicide. (Yonhap)

The number of elementary, middle and high school teachers who took their own life over the past decade amounted to 144, a ruling party lawmaker said Wednesday, citing data from the Ministry of Education.

The suicides occurred between 2014 and August this year, Rep. Lee Tae-kyu of the ruling People Power Party said, noting the annual number spiked from six in 2014 to 20 in 2018 and 25 in 2021.

The number decreased to 20 last year but as many as 14 teachers died by suicide in the first eight months of this year, Lee added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

By Korean rally standards this is a very small group, however it did have U.S. embassy officials attend this rally in Seoul in support of Israel:

The flags of Israel and Korea held by participants of a rally in Seoul on Tuesday in support of Israel in the wake of the Hamas militant group’s attack on Israel and the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. [NEWS1]

Hundreds of Koreans and Israelis in Korea rallied to support Israel in Seoul on Tuesday as top diplomats from Israel and the United States stood side-by-side to voice support for the Jewish state in the wake of Hamas’s brutal attack on Oct. 7. 
  
“Thank you to all the Jewish and Israeli people living in Korea for coming today to Gwanghwamun and not giving in to fear or anxiety,” said Akiva Tor, ambassador of Israel to Korea, addressing the crowd gathered near Gwanghwamun Station in Seoul on Tuesday, many waving the flag of Israel. “I would like to thank the Republic of Korea’s government for its strong statements of condemnation of the Hamas atrocities and for being a friend to Israel.”

The rally, organized by the Korea-Israel Friendship Association and Israel Forum, was joined by some 200 participants, according to the organizers.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

I would hope someone is developing technology to detect moving drone based mines like we are seeing the Black Sea right now from Ukraine:

Northrop Grumman has been contracted to provide technical support for South Korea’s upcoming naval minesweeping helicopter, the company announced in a news release Monday. 

The Virginia-based company will support the integration of its Airborne Laser Mine Detection System, or ALMDS, into Korea Aerospace Industries’ Korean Mine Countermeasures Helicopter program by 2027, according to the release.

The purpose of the ALMDS is to detect and identify floating and near-surface moored mines, Northrop Grumman said on its website. The system has been used in U.S. Navy littoral combat ships and the MH-60S Seahawk helicopters since its development in 2016.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

That is the debate in South Korea right now in regards to whether it is too soon to celebrate Halloween one year after the horrible crushing tragedy that killed 159 people:

Controversy has arisen over whether visiting Seoul’s popular nightlife district Itaewon to celebrate Halloween this year is acceptable, as the one-year anniversary of the crowd crush that took the lives of 159 mostly young people approaches.

On Sunday, an online community post posed the question: “Is going to Itaewon this Halloween a thoughtless act?” The post presented two options — “It’s thoughtless” and “No problem at all” — soon sparking fervent discussion with hundreds of comments.

While there were several reactions of concern over enjoying Halloween in Itaewon, the general consensus leaned toward the notion that visiting Itaewon for this year’s holiday would be acceptable. However, many emphasized the importance of commemorating the Itaewon tragedy and being cautious of each other’s safety, rather than solely indulging in Halloween festivities.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Here is how the Russians moved all the arms they received from North Korea into Russia for further movement to the battlefields of Ukraine:

This image, provided by the U.S. government, shows apparent arms transfers between North Korea and Russia. (Yonhap)

Two Russian ships made at least five round trips between North Korea and Russia, beginning mid-August, in what could be arms transfers, the Washington Post reported Monday, citing satellite imagery.

Based on analysis by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a London-based think tank, the ships have been travelling between the northeastern North Korean port of Najin and a port facility in Dunay in Russia’s Far East between mid-August and Saturday.

The analysis came after the U.S. government revealed Friday that the North shipped more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia in recent weeks for use in Ukraine, highlighting burgeoning military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.