Se Eun Gong

The man was convicted of killing a female colleague in a Seoul subway station last year, a day before he was to be sentenced on stalking charges. This has led to calls for better protection for women.

"It looks like people will be squashed to death," said a person who called police nearly three hours before the first fatality. On Wednesday, the team investigating the incident raided Seoul police.

As the police launch an investigation, the country is mourning the victims of Saturday night's deadly stampede in Itaewon. Eyewitnesses are lamenting the lack of crowd control measures.

These are the first adjustments to social measures since the country began a long-awaited transition to a new phase in pandemic response in early November and lifted most of the restrictions.

South Korea is seeking a degree of normalcy by gradually easing restrictions. "We have to find a way to safely coexist with COVID-19 even if that means taking some risks," an official said.

The country's ruling Democratic Party suffered a devastating defeat in Wednesday's mayoral by-elections, widely considered a bellwether for Moon Jae-in's chances for reelection next year.

Beginning Christmas Eve and through Jan. 3, South Korea will limit public and private gatherings to four people. Many tourist sites popular during the holiday period will be closed.

Churches resume in-person services and stadiums welcome sports fans as the country once again manages to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

A former secretary of Park's says she endured four years of sexual harassment. The mayor was found dead on Friday in a park, and the allegations have left the country divided about his legacy.

The country had prepared to welcome students back to classrooms on Wednesday, but dozens of new virus cases linked to nightclubs in Seoul have emerged.