South Korea

Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung was stabbed in the neck, authorities said, during a visit to the city of Busan. No motive for the attack was immediately available.

South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, who played a rich entrepreneur in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, was found dead on Wednesday. Police suspect he died by suicide.

South Korea had no military reconnaissance satellites of its own in space and has partially resorted to the United States' spy satellites to monitor moves by North Korea.

The South Korean announcement — which will likely infuriate North Korea — came hours after the North claimed to have placed a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit.

Experts point to economic difficulties from prolonged international sanctions, but the closures may signal a possible change in North Korea's foreign policy that is more focused on Moscow and Beijing.

At the recently concluded Games, South Korean athletes and journalists said North Koreans refused to engage with them. Some even avoided customary handshakes or photo sessions atop the podium.

Many South Korean teachers say they have suffered from parents' harassment and excessive demands. This summer, they came out to the streets voicing anger and demanding protection for their rights.

Just 67 North Korean defectors arrived last year. Inter-Korean dialogue and exchange have ground to a halt. Seoul's Unification Ministry has a new, hawkish head who wants to change the agency's role.

The failed launch prompted neighboring Japan to issue a brief "J-alert" ordering some residents to evacuate to safe places as the North Korean rocket flew over its southernmost islands of Okinawa.