January 3, 2025

A standoff between the impeached president’s security team and officials seeking to detain him was echoed on the streets outside the presidential residence.

Blocked by bodyguards in an hourslong standoff, officials retreated without serving a court warrant to hold President Yoon Suk Yeol for questioning on insurrection charges.

Germany and France’s top diplomats went to Damascus on behalf on the European Union. It’s the first such trip in years, and part of a flurry of Western outreach.

An eight-story commercial complex caught fire south of the nation’s capital, fire officials said.

In a deal with Islamist parties, Pakistan is abandoning a requirement that religious seminaries, long seen by Western officials as a potential threat, register with the government.

The two Mideast powerhouses have been trying to block the rise of Islamist groups in the region for two decades. The rebel takeover in Damascus will test that approach.

Police officers and investigators tried to bring President Yoon Suk Yeol in for questioning about his declaration of martial law last month.