"Squid Game," a brutal Netflix survival drama about desperate adults competing in deadly children's games for a chance to escape severe debt, hit a little too close to home for Lee Chang-keun.

The show has captivated global audiences since its September debut on its way to becoming Netflix's biggest hit ever. It has struck raw nerves at home, where there's growing discontent over soaring personal debt, decaying job markets and stark income inequalities worsened by financial crises in the past two decades.

Actor William Shatner counted down Wednesday to his wildest role yet: riding a rocket into space, courtesy of "Star Trek" fan Jeff Bezos.

Best known for his role as Captain Kirk, the 90-year-old Shatner joined three other passengers for the planned launch from West Texas.

The Biden administration says the United States will reopen its land borders for nonessential travel next month, ending a 19-month freeze due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

New rules to be announced Wednesday will allow fully vaccinated foreign nationals entry to the U.S. regardless of the reason for travel.

A North Korean soldier clad in a super-tight blue outfit in a state media photo has generated a buzz on social media, with some calling him "a superhero," "a captain DPRK," or "a rocket man."

He was among nearly 30 soldiers who posed for a photo with leader Kim Jong Un during an exhibition of weapons systems on Monday. North Korea published photos of the event the following day.

Raúl Isaías Baduel, a former Venezuelan defense minister and ally-turned-critic of the late President Hugo Chávez, died from COVID-19 while in prison, where he had been awaiting trial since 2017 for alleged links to a purported plot to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro, the government said Tuesday.

Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced the death of the 66-year-old Baduel on Twitter, saying that "we convey our condolences to his family and friends."

China's recent increase in military exercises and warplane missions near Taiwan — which have raised concerns around the region — were necessary to defend the nation's sovereignty and territory, a Chinese official said Wednesday.

China's military flew 56 planes off the southwest coast of Taiwan on a single day earlier this month, a single-day record that capped four days of a sustained pressure campaign involving 149 flights. All were in international airspace, but the display raised fears that any misstep could provoke an unintended escalation in the region.

Osman Touré was crying from the pain of repeated beatings and torture as he dialed his brother's cellphone number.

"I'm in prison in Libya," Touré said in that August 2017 call. "They will kill me if you don't pay 2,500 dinars in 24 hours."

Lebanon secured their first win in the final round of the FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers on Tuesday as they edged Syria 3-2 in Amman.

Following the result, Lebanon are now on five points from four matches, three behind second place South Korea, who drew 1-1 against Iran in an empty stadium in Tehran.

Iraq's Shiite militias that often serve as a proxy for neighboring Iran have taken a beating in Iraq's election, while a Shiite cleric who set himself apart by taking a more nationalistic approach has emerged as Iraq's strongest political figure.

The results underscore growing divisions over Iran's heavy-handed influence in the country, weakening Iran's allies as it seeks to revive its nuclear deal with world powers and engage with its regional rival, Saudi Arabia.

Two U.S. Postal Service workers were fatally shot Tuesday at a postal facility in Memphis and a third employee identified as the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot, authorities said. It was the third high-profile shooting in or near that west Tennessee city in weeks.

U.S. Postal Inspector Susan Link said the three postal workers were found dead after the shooting at the East Lamar Carrier Annex in a prominent Memphis neighborhood. FBI spokeswoman Lisa-Anne Culp said the shooting was carried out by a third postal service worker, who shot him or herself.