Other mysterious deaths of North Korea’s perceived enemies

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech in Pyongyang in this undated image from video distributed on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017. SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — An outcast from North Korea’s ruling family was killed with a weapon believed to belong to North Korea’s chemical arsenal and several North Koreans are wanted for questioning.

Malaysia expels North Korean ambassador over Kima s killing

Malaysia’s foreign minister says the government has expelled North Korea’s ambassador for criticizing the investigation into the killing of the North Korean leader’s estranged half brother. Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said in a statement that a notice was sent to the North Korean Embassy on Saturday saying Ambassador Kang Chol must leave the country within 48 hours.

UN report shows North Korea using Africa to slip sanctions

A confidential report says North Korean weapons barred by United Nations sanctions ended up in the hands of U.N. peacekeepers in Africa. The annual report by a U.N. panel of experts, obtained by The Associated Press, illustrates how Pyongyang evades sanctions imposed for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs to cooperate “on a large scale” in Africa.

Malaysia expels North Korean ambassador after Kim Jong Nam murder

Malaysia on Saturday expelled the North Korean ambassador to the country, declaring him “persona non grata” and asking the envoy to leave Malaysia within 48 hours. The move comes nearly three weeks after Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, was murdered at Kuala Lumpur’s airport with a toxic nerve agent.

DNA Test On Jong-nam Can Be Performed Using Health, Dental Records – Hilmi

GEORGE TOWN, March 4 — The deoxyribonucleic acid profile test on Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, can be performed through the health or dental records of the man if the DNA from his family could not be obtained. Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said currently the ministry was still awaiting next course of action by the police.

White House eyes steep cuts to leading US climate science agency

Washington: President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to slash one of the government’s premier climate science agencies by 17 per cent, delivering steep cuts to research funding and satellite programs, according to a four-page budget memo obtained by The Washington Post.The proposed cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would also eliminate funding for a variety of smaller programs including external research, coastal management, estuary reserves and “coastal resilience,” which seeks to bolster the ability of coastal areas to withstand major storms and rising seas.

White House eyes steep cuts to leading US climate science agency

Washington: President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to slash one of the government’s premier climate science agencies by 17 per cent, delivering steep cuts to research funding and satellite programs, according to a four-page budget memo obtained by The Washington Post.The proposed cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would also eliminate funding for a variety of smaller programs including external research, coastal management, estuary reserves and “coastal resilience,” which seeks to bolster the ability of coastal areas to withstand major storms and rising seas.

Warrant Issued for North Korean Airline Employee in Kim Jong Nam Case

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia-Malaysian police issued an arrest warrant for a North Korean airline employee in the killing of Kim Jong Nam, hours after freeing the only North Korean who had been detained in the case. Police issued the warrant for Kim Uk Il, describing him as a 37-year-old employee of North Korean state carrier Air Koryo who arrived in Malaysia at the end of January.

Warrant Issued for North Korean Airline Employee in Kim Jong Nam Case

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia-Malaysian police issued an arrest warrant for a North Korean airline employee in the killing of Kim Jong Nam, hours after freeing the only North Korean who had been detained in the case. Police issued the warrant for Kim Uk Il, describing him as a 37-year-old employee of North Korean state carrier Air Koryo who arrived in Malaysia at the end of January.

One N. Korean freed, another sought in nerve-agent killing

North Korean Ri Jong Chol, center, who was arrested in connection with the death of Kim Jong Un’s half-brother, is transferred from Sepang district police station in Sepang, Malaysia Friday, March 3, 2017. Earlier Thursday, Malaysian authorities said they will release Ri from custody Friday because of a lack of evidence.

Malaysia Scraps Visa Waiver for N.Koreans

Malaysia on Thursday abruptly scrapped a visa-free pact with North Korea over the assassination of Kim Jong- nam at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Feb. 13. Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the move was motivated by concerns for national security, according to the Bernama news agency. The North has infuriated Malaysians by denouncing the police investigation after four suspects fled to Pyongyang while two others remain holed up in the embassy.

North Korea ties at worst point in decades, South Korea says

North Korea relations have fallen to their worst point in decades and talks are off the table until Kim Jong Un’s regime is ready to give up its nuclear weapons, South Korea Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo said in an interview. “It’s been over 20 years since North Korea’s nuclear threats started, and tensions are at their worst,” Hong, who oversees policy on North Korea, said on Thursday in Seoul.

The Latest: N. Korean envoy rejects Malaysian autopsy

Media film and photograph a North Korean diplomatic vehicle leaving the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Thursday, March 2, 2017. Malaysia is scrapping visa-free entry for North Koreans traveling into the country, the state news agency said Thursday in the latest fallout from a deadly nerve agent attack at Kuala Lumpur airport.

Malaysia to release, deport N. Korean in nerve agent probe

This file image provided by Star TV of closed circuit television footage from Feb. 13, 2017, shows Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, left, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia, who police say was arrested in connection with the death of Kim Jong Nam, the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Because of a grainy security camera photo that went viral, she is now known to many as the LOL assassin.

The White House is considering direct military action to…

In a dramatic shift from traditional policy, an internal White House review on North Korean strategy revealed that the option to use military force, or a regime change to curb the threat of North Korean nuclear weapons was on the table, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. This review comes at the heels of a report claiming President Donald Trump believed the ” greatest immediate threat ” to the US was North Korea’s nuclear program.

UN panel says North Korea uses new ways to flout sanctions

North Korea is flouting United Nations sanctions by trading in prohibited weapons and other goods and using evasion techniques “that are increasing in scale, scope and sophistication,” U.N. experts say in a new report. The panel of experts monitoring sanctions against Pyongyang said that despite strengthened financial sanctions adopted in 2016 the country is still accessing formal banking channels “by using greater ingenuity.”

Malaysia to charge two women with murder of Kim Jong Nam

Two women accused of killing the half-brother of North Korea’s leader with a nerve agent in a Kuala Lumpur airport terminal will be charged with murder on Wednesday, Malaysia’s chief prosecutor has said. Mohamed Apandi Ali said the charges against Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong would bring a mandatory death sentence if they are convicted.

NKorea official in Beijing after China’s ban on coal imports

A senior North Korean diplomat arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for talks following China’s ban on coal imports from its neighbor and the killing of the exiled half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Vice Foreign Minister Ri Kil Song will hold talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on “issues of common concern,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing.

NKorea official in Beijing after China’s ban on coal imports

A senior North Korean diplomat arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for talks following China’s ban on coal imports from its neighbor and the killing of the exiled half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Vice Foreign Minister Ri Kil Song will hold talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on “issues of common concern,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing.

N. Korean diplomats in Malaysia to seek Kim’s brother’s body

Ri Tong Il, former North Korean deputy ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters outside the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017. Ri told reporters Tuesday that North Korea has sent a high-level delegation to Malaysia to seek the return of the body of leader’s Kim Jong Un’s slain half brother and the release of a North Korean arrested in the case.

Malaysia: Poisoning of Kim Jong Nam caused paralysis, quick death

Malaysia’s Health Minister Subramaniam Sathasivam speaks during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. Subramaniam said Sunday that the dose of nerve agent given to North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un’s half brother was so high that it killed him “within 15-20 minutes.” Kim Jong Nam died Feb. 13 at Kuala Lumpur’s airport in what Malaysian police say was a well-planned hit by two women who wiped a liquid on Kim’s face.

Malaysia: Poisoning of Kim caused paralysis, quick death

Malaysia’s Health Minister Subramaniam Sathasivam speaks during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. Subramaniam said Sunday that the dose of nerve agent given to North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un’s half brother was so high that it killed him “within 15-20 minutes.”

Kim Jong Nam died within 20 minutes of exposure to nerve agent at airport

A man watches a television showing news reports of Kim Jong-Nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, in Seoul on February 14, 2017. Kim Jong-Nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has been assassinated in Malaysia, South Korean media reported on February 14. / AFP / JUNG Yeon-Je A man watches a television showing news reports of Kim Jong-Nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, in Seoul on February 14, 2017.

The Latest: Malaysia: Poison killed Kim within 20 minutes

The Latest on Malaysia’s investigation into the apparent assassination of the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un : Malaysia’s health minister says the dose of poison given to North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un’s half brother was so high that it killed him “within 15-20 minutes.” Kim Jong Nam died Feb. 13 at Kuala Lumpur’s airport.

Duped into killing Kim? 2 suspects say it looked like prank

This file image provided by Star TV of closed circuit television footage from Feb. 13, 2017, shows Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, left, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia, who police say was arrested in connection with the death of Kim Jong Nam, the half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Two women – Doan and an Indonesian – have been arrested for allegedly coating their hands with the immensely toxic chemical agent VX and wiping them on the face of Kim Jong Nam at the airport.

Why N. Korea may have used VX to kill leader’s half brother

SEOUL, South Korea>> Was it a poorly executed assassination or did North Korea want to showcase its stockpile of banned chemical weapons? The use of the highly toxic VX warfare agent to kill the estranged half brother of North Korea’s leader has raised questions about Pyongyang’s real motives in one of the strangest killings the world has seen. Some say North Korea, in allegedly bringing a U.N.-classified weapon of mass destruction to kill a man at a busy international airport, intended to show the world what it can do with chemical weapons, which are easily forgotten amid concerns about the country’s advancing nuclear missile technologies.

Key developments in Kim’s assassination investigation

A Malaysian police officer guards the gate of the National Forensic Institute at Kuala Lumpur Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. Malaysian police ordered a sweep of Kuala Lumpur airport for toxic chemicals and other hazardous substances following the killing of Kim Jong Nam.

Korea to conclude land acquisition for THAAD battery this week

South Korea is expected to conclude the land acquisition for the US advanced missile defense system this week with actual deployment to be completed by late June at the earliest, the military said Sunday. The defense ministry said administrative measures to take over the Seongju golf club owned by retail giant Lotte Group will be completed soon.

FM Yun to raise voice against N. Korea’s human rights, chemical weapons issues

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will attend international conferences this week to speak out against North Korea’s human rights abuses and shed light on Pyongyang’s use of chemical weapons, government officials said Sunday. Yun plans to visit Geneva on Monday and Tuesday to attend a session of the UN Human Rights Council and the Conference on Disarmament, Seoul’s foreign ministry said.

Failure to launch foundation on NK human rights to enter sixth month

South Korea has yet to launch a foundation to support civic groups’ activities that aim to improve North Korea’s human rights situation even though a relevant law took effect six months ago, government officials said Sunday. The law aimed at improving North Korea’s dismal human rights situation came into force in September 2016, but the foundation has failed to start work as the main opposition party is delaying recommending candidates for board members, sources said.