SEOUL: South Korea’s parliament was shut down on Thursday and a group of lawmakers were in self-quarantine as the country recorded more than 400 new coronavirus infections.
The country endured one of the worst early outbreaks of COVID-19 outside mainland China before bringing it broadly under control with extensive tracing and testing, but is now battling several clusters mostly linked to Protestant churches.
Thursday’s 441 new cases were mostly in the greater Seoul area and are the latest in a series of near-six-month highs after several weeks with numbers generally in the 30s and 40s.
The National Assembly was closed after a photojournalist who covered a ruling party meeting on Wednesday was later tested and confirmed to have contracted COVID-19.
The result prompted more than 10 top Democrats — including the party chairman and its parliamentary leader — to undergo tests of their own and go into self-isolation.
Officials on Wednesday held late-night talks on how to handle the situation and ordered all parliamentary activities suspended from Thursday, with both the assembly and a building housing lawmakers’ offices closed.
Opposition parties also canceled scheduled meetings.
The parliamentary shutdown is the second over coronavirus concerns, after a February closure when an attendee at an event tested positive.
Thursday was the 14th consecutive day of triple-digit increases in case numbers, bringing the country’s total to 18,706.
The largest current cluster is centered on the Sarang Jeil church in Seoul, headed by a controversial right-wing pastor who is a leading figure in protests against President Moon Jae-in.
Pastor Jun Kwang-hun spoke at an anti-government rally held earlier this month in defiance of calls to avoid large gatherings, and has since tested positive.
Authorities have filed police complaints against him, accusing him of deliberately hindering efforts to contain the epidemic.
All religious services were banned earlier this month in the greater Seoul area to try to prevent the virus spreading and Moon met with more than 15 Protestant church leaders on Thursday, asking for their cooperation.
“Worship or prayer may give you peace of mind, but it cannot protect you from the virus,” he told them, according to his office.
“All religious organizations have to accept that prevention measures are not a matter of faith, but a matter of science and medicine.”
But Kim Tae-young, who heads the United Christian Churches of Korea, one of the country’s biggest Protestant groupings, said that for believers, religious freedom was a value “that cannot be surrendered even if it costs one’s life.”
South Korea is the world’s 12th largest economy and a capitalist democracy, but during its decades of military rule its widespread evangelical Christian churches framed North Korea and Pyongyang sympathizers as evil.
Such churches still have enduring political influence in the South, and many are critical of Moon’s left-leaning government.
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South Korean parliament closed over coronavirus fears
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South Korean parliament closed over coronavirus fears
- All parliamentary activities suspended, with both the assembly and a building housing lawmakers’ offices closed
South Korea says civilians sent drones to North Korea four times, harming ties
- South Korea is investigating civilians for sending drones to North Korea
- North Korean leader’s sister Kim Yo Jong warns Seoul over drone provocations
SEOUL: South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said on Wednesday that three civilians had sent drones to North Korea on four occasions since President Lee Jae Myung took office last year, harming inter-Korean ties.
The trio flew the aircraft between September 2025 and January, Chung said, citing an ongoing investigation by police and the military. Drones crashed on two occasions in North Korea, in line with claims made by Pyongyang, he said.
On two other attempts the drones returned to Paju, a border settlement in South Korea, after flying over Kaesong, a city in North Korea, Chung said.
South Korean authorities were investigating the three civilians on suspicion of violating the aviation safety act and breaching criminal law by benefiting the enemy, he said.
Some officials at South Korea’s military intelligence agency and the National Intelligence Service were also under investigation for alleged involvement with the trio, he said.
“We express official regret to the North,” Chung said, adding that the government was taking the drone incursion incidents very seriously.
North Korea has reacted angrily, saying last month that drones from South Korea entered its airspace, after another intrusion in September.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, urged Seoul to investigate the incident, warning provocations could result in “terrible situations.”
Chung also expressed regret over South Korea sending 18 drones to North Korea under the direction of ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol.
“It was an extremely dangerous incident aimed to induce an attack against South Korea by sending 18 drones on 11 occasions, to sensitive areas in North Korea including the airspace over the Workers’ Party office,” he said.
South Korean prosecutors have indicted Yoon, who was ousted in April 2025, on charges that include aiding an enemy state.
They accused him and his military commanders of ordering a covert drone operation into the North to raise tensions and justify his martial law decree.
Yoon denies wrongdoing.
South Korea’s government plans to strengthen penalties for sending drones to the North, Chung said, including up to a one-year jail term or a 10 million won ($6,928) fine.
A clause will also be added to South Korea’s inter-Korean relations development act to block actions that heighten tensions on the peninsula, he said.
The trio flew the aircraft between September 2025 and January, Chung said, citing an ongoing investigation by police and the military. Drones crashed on two occasions in North Korea, in line with claims made by Pyongyang, he said.
On two other attempts the drones returned to Paju, a border settlement in South Korea, after flying over Kaesong, a city in North Korea, Chung said.
South Korean authorities were investigating the three civilians on suspicion of violating the aviation safety act and breaching criminal law by benefiting the enemy, he said.
Some officials at South Korea’s military intelligence agency and the National Intelligence Service were also under investigation for alleged involvement with the trio, he said.
“We express official regret to the North,” Chung said, adding that the government was taking the drone incursion incidents very seriously.
North Korea has reacted angrily, saying last month that drones from South Korea entered its airspace, after another intrusion in September.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, urged Seoul to investigate the incident, warning provocations could result in “terrible situations.”
Chung also expressed regret over South Korea sending 18 drones to North Korea under the direction of ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol.
“It was an extremely dangerous incident aimed to induce an attack against South Korea by sending 18 drones on 11 occasions, to sensitive areas in North Korea including the airspace over the Workers’ Party office,” he said.
South Korean prosecutors have indicted Yoon, who was ousted in April 2025, on charges that include aiding an enemy state.
They accused him and his military commanders of ordering a covert drone operation into the North to raise tensions and justify his martial law decree.
Yoon denies wrongdoing.
South Korea’s government plans to strengthen penalties for sending drones to the North, Chung said, including up to a one-year jail term or a 10 million won ($6,928) fine.
A clause will also be added to South Korea’s inter-Korean relations development act to block actions that heighten tensions on the peninsula, he said.
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