It seems even the North Koreans got tired of dealing with this idiot considering they deported him witouth any concessions:
An American soldier who crossed the inter-Korean border into North Korea in July is in U.S. custody after his release by the reclusive regime, senior U.S. administration officials said Wednesday, capping an intense diplomatic operation facilitated by Sweden and China.
Speaking in a press briefing, the officials said Pvt. Travis King has been transferred out of North Korea across the border with China, and that he appears to be “in good health and good spirits” ahead of his return home.
The announcement on his release came shortly after the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Pyongyang decided to “expel” him following a probe, during which the outlet said he confessed to having “illegally intruded” into the North’s territory.
Yonhap
Here is what Private King supposeldy had to say while in North Korean custody:
Hours earlier, KCNA said North Korean authorities conducted an investigation, where he said he had “ill feelings” about the U.S. military and society.
“Travis King confessed that he illegally intruded into the territory of the DPRK as he harbored ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. army and was disillusioned about the unequal U.S. society,” KCNA said in its English-language report. “The relevant organ of the DPRK decided to expel Travis King.
You can read more at the link, but it will be interesting to see what additional charges this idiot will face for his latest stupidity. Hopefully USFK gets him out of the country as soon as possible before he creates more problems and this time have someone escort and fly with him the entire way back to the U.S.
The Korea Herald has a long article about violence against women in Korea. In the article there is an idea on making people accused of stalking wear police issued GPS bracelets. This would allow the person they are stalking to know where that person is. This is an interesting idea, but I would like to see the safeguards on how abuse of making people wear GPS bracelets would be prevented:
Still images from CCTV footage show a man violently attacking a woman in Busan in May 2022. (Courtesy of JTBC)
In a bid to take a more systemic approach, South Korea is working to determine what behaviors constitute an abusive pattern in offenders, and how to adequately train judges, court staff, police officers and other support organizations to identify the risk factors and protections needed.
There is also room for improvement when it comes to the efficacy of temporary restraining orders in deterring offenders from making contact with victims. There have been repeated calls, including from the unnamed victim of the roundhouse kick incident to allow police to use GPS tracking devices on both gender-based crime and stalking offenders and their victims. Under the current system, only victims are able to use the devices to alert police in an emergency, and these devices cannot detect the location of the offenders automatically.
Korea Herald
You can read more at the link.
It looks like Lee Jae-myung will avoid being arrested and detained as the investigation into the corruption charges around him continues:
A Seoul court on Wednesday rejected an arrest warrant sought for opposition leader Lee Jae-myung over corruption charges, a decision that averted the biggest crisis yet for the former presidential candidate.
The Seoul Central District Court made the decision following a hearing attended by Lee, chair of the Democratic Party (DP). It marked the first time the leader of South Korea’s main opposition party has attended an arrest warrant hearing.
“In comprehensive consideration of the degree to which the defendant’s right to defense is needed and the extent of concerns about the possible destruction of evidence, it is difficult to see the rationale and need for his arrest to the extent that the principle of investigation without detention should be ruled out,” a court judge said.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
Too bad the weather wasn’t better, but I guess we will see how North Korea responds to this military parade in Seoul:
Amidst the rain, South Korea showcases its indigenous Hyunmoo ballistic missiles during a military street parade in downtown Seoul, commemorating the 75th anniversary of Armed Forces Day. (Yonhap)
The South Korean military showcased an array of domestically produced advanced weaponry in a rare, large-scale military parade in downtown Seoul on Tuesday, with its commander-in-chief warning North Korea of the collapse of the Kim Jong-un regime in the case of a nuclear attack against the South.
In commemoration of the 75th anniversary of Armed Forces Day, observed each year on Oct. 1, South Korea demonstrated its robust conventional military capabilities, serving as a resolute message to North Korea amid its increased nuclear threats.
This high-profile military street parade, the first in a decade, was staged hours after President Yoon Suk Yeol issued a stern warning to North Korea during a military inspection ceremony.
“If North Korea uses nuclear weapons, its regime will be brought to an end by an overwhelming response from the ROK-US alliance,” Yoon said in his speech at Seoul Air Base, referring to South Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Republic of Korea.
Korea Herald
You can read more at the link, but US military personnel participated in the parade as well for the first time.
Stryker Brigade combat troops from the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division join a South Korean military parade in downtown Seoul on Tuesday in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of Armed Forces Day. (Yonhap)
Does anyone think the album would have been recalled if someone claimed it looked like a Bible or a Torah?:
The first production copies of K-Pop boy band Kingdom’s latest album are being pulled off the shelves and discarded amid a controversy over the album cover’s resemblance to the Quran.
Kingdom’s agency GF Entertainment announced Monday that “There were concerns expressed that the Kingdom’s seventh mini-album cover, which was due to go on presale on Sept. 21, bore a striking similarity to the Quran.”
The agency added, “In light of the circumstances, we have decided to recall, discard and redesign all 70,000 initial production copies of the album.”
Korea Times
You can read more at the link.
With an impending government shutdown coming up by the end of the week it appears paychecks for U.S. troops and possibly even the Coast Guard are going to be protected:
Lawmakers are scrambling to ensure troops will be paid in case of a looming government shutdown, including Coast Guard members who typically go without paychecks during the closing of federal agencies.
In the House, Rep. Jennifer Kiggans, R-Va., a former Navy helicopter pilot, is pushing a bill that will keep service members paid if Congress fails to agree on a funding plan by Oct. 1. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, a Marine Corps veteran, is leading a similar effort in the Senate alongside Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who introduced a separate bill focused on Coast Guard pay.
“Our service members shouldn’t suffer because of Washington’s dysfunction,” Kiggans said. “As we continue working to avoid a government shutdown at the end of the month, this legislation will give our troops the financial certainty they deserve.”
Active-duty troops are required to keep working in a shutdown and could start missing paychecks if lawmakers cannot agree on either short-term or full-year funding for the Pentagon. House Republicans have twice failed in recent weeks to put their defense appropriations bill on the floor for a vote due to party infighting.
The proposed military pay legislation guarantees the same paycheck protections Congress gave troops hours before the start of a 16-day government shutdown in 2013. The military was largely unaffected by the last shutdown in late 2018 to early 2019 because the Pentagon had a congressionally approved budget at the time, though the Coast Guard continued to work without paychecks for 34 days.
Stars & Stripes
You can read more at the link, but these shutdowns are so dumb because all the government workers receive their back pay and are essentially being paid to stay home.
