A South Korean court on Wednesday dismissed a damages lawsuit brought by a group of former "comfort women" against the Japanese government over their treatment in Japanese military brothels during World War II.
The Seoul Central District Court decision follows a ruling on Jan. 8 by the same court that ordered the government to compensate 12 women, including those who died since filing the suit. Wednesday's decision was given out by a different panel of judges.
Another ruling in favor of former comfort women would have dealt a further blow to Japan-South Korea ties, which have already sunk to the lowest level in decades after a series of South Korean Supreme Court rulings in late 2018 that ordered Japanese firms to provide compensation for wartime forced labor.