1.The National Assembly held a plenary session on Thursday and passed 77 key livelihood bills, including measures for punishing deepfake sexual exploitation crimes and extending parental leave.

2.Interior Minister Lee Sang-min on Friday announced government plans to invest 3.3 trillion won, or roughly 2.5 billion U.S. dollars, of its health insurance funding annually over the next five years to reform tertiary care hospitals to better prioritize the treatment of critically ill patients.

3.Japan's former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba won the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election on Friday, defeating economic security minister Sanae Takaichi in a runoff vote, and is set to be named prime minister next week after a parliamentary vote.

1.President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday pledged to support South Korea's ascent to the ranks of the world's top three artificial intelligence powerhouses by 2027 at the inaugural meeting of a presidential committee on the AI industry.

2.The Ministry of Economy and Finance said Thursday that South Korea is expected to face a tax shortfall of nearly 30 trillion won, or about 22-point-6 billion U.S. dollars, this year. The government expects to collect 337-point-7 trillion won in taxes, which is 8-point-1 percent less than the forecast made in the 2024 budget planning.

3.Hezbollah on Wednesday said it launched a ballistic missile toward the headquarters of Israel’s intelligence service Mossad near Tel Aviv, shortly after the Israeli military said it intercepted the attack.

1.President Yoon Suk Yeol hosted a dinner meeting with the leadership of the ruling People Power Party on Tuesday. President Yoon discussed the outcome of his recent visit to the Czech Republic, but there is said to be no meaningful discussions on sensitive issues about the medical reform and first lady Kim Keon Hee.

2.South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Monday that the 8th round of negotiations for the 12th Special Measures Agreement between South Korea and the United States, which will determine South Korea's defense cost-sharing for U.S. Forces Korea from 2026 onward, is set to take place in Seoul from September 25th to 27th.

3.An Israeli airstrike on Beirut killed a senior Hezbollah commander on Tuesday as cross-border rocket attacks by both sides increased fears of a full-fledged war in the Middle East. Hezbollah early on Wednesday confirmed senior commander Ibrahim Qubaisi was killed. Israel said Qubaisi headed the group's missile and rocket force.

1.President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to host a dinner meeting with the leadership of the ruling People Power Party on Tuesday, including PPP chief Han Dong-hoon, floor leader Choo Kyung-ho and Supreme Council members, for the second time following Han's election in July.

2.According to the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, South Korea's producer price index fell 0-point-1 percent in August from a month earlier, driven by a fall in the prices of oil and related products.

3.Lebanon's health ministry said Monday that at least 492 people have been killed in intense and wide-ranging Israeli air strikes targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon, in the deadliest day of conflict since 2006. France on Monday requested an emergency UN Security Council meeting to discuss Lebanon.

1.The Korea Electric Power Corporation said Monday that it plans to freeze electricity rates for the fourth quarter at 5 won per kilowatt-hour. The rate, however, is still subject to an additional adjustment later this year.

2.The Joint Chiefs of Staff on Monday vowed to take “stern” military measures should North Korea “cross the line” with its ongoing trash balloon campaign or inflict serious damage to the South Korean people.

3.Hezbollah and Israel exchanged intense fire into Sunday, while Hezbollah deputy chief said it has entered an “open-ended battle of reckoning” with Israel. The conflict between the two has escalated sharply in the past week, renewing fears of wider war·

1.President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday held out the prospect of forging a "nuclear energy alliance" with the Czech Republic, after holding a summit with Czech President Petr Pavel.

2.The United States on Thursday announced sanctions against five entities and one individual -- based in Russia and a Russian-occupied Georgian region -- for their alleged involvement in illicit financial schemes between Pyongyang and Moscow.

3.Israel carried out extensive air strikes on southern Lebanon late on Thursday, heightening the conflict between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, amid calls for restraint.

1.President Yoon Suk Yeol left for Prague on Thursday for a trip focused on ensuring a major nuclear energy project in the Czech Republic. Ahead of his departure, President Yoon expressed confidence in a written interview with Reuters that Korea will clinch the deal despite legal concerns.

2.The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday lowered its benchmark interest rate by half of a percentage point to the 4.75 to 5.0 percent range, and hinted at possibly further lowering the rate later this year.

3.The opposition-dominated National Assembly passed three contentious bills on Thursday, including two mandating special counsel probes - one to look into the death of a marine last year and another to examine allegations against First Lady Kim Keon-hee. The ruling People Power Party chose to boycott Thursday's plenary session.

1.The Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles in a northeastern direction on Wednesday, further raising tensions just five days after North Korea disclosed a uranium enrichment facility.

2.Health authorities said Tuesday that emergency rooms at hospitals nationwide operated smoothly on Chuseok with patient traffic comparable to that of a typical weekend, amid a prolonged doctors' walkout.

3.Pagers used by hundreds of members of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah exploded simultaneously in Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday, killing at least nine people and wounding over 2-thousand-800.