North Koreans searching for South Korean official they apologized for killing

September 28, 2020

President Donald J. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, shake hands as they meet for the first time, Tuesday, June 12, 2018, at the Capella Hotel in Singapore. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

By Mary Rose Corkery
Daily Caller News Foundation

North Korea said they are searching for the body of a South Korean official after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un apologized for his death, Reuters reported.

North Korea started trying to find the body, but also said that South Korean naval operations crossed a sea border into North Korean territory, North Korean state news agency KCNA said, according to Reuters. KCNA also called for South Korea to stop crossing the border in the west sea.

“We also took more necessary security measures in order to make sure that no more incident spoiling the relations of trust and respect between the north and the south would happen in any case,” KCNA said, according to Reuters.

Kim apologized last week for the official’s death after he was killed in North Korean waters, South Korean officials said, according to The Associated Press. South Korea accused their neighboring country of shooting and killing the official and setting his body on fire.

South Korean officials condemned North Korea over the incident and called the killing an “atrocious act,” urging their neighboring country to determine who was responsible, the AP reported. The official may have been attempting to defect from the south to the north, the AP reported.

A State Department spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation that North Korea’s apology and explanation was “a helpful step,” but joined calls for a greater explanation.

“We understand that the DPRK has conveyed an explanation and apology to [South Korea]. This is a helpful step,” the State Department spokesperson said.

“We offer our deepest condolences to the friends and family of the South Korean official who was killed. We fully support our [Republic of Korea] ally’s condemnation of this act and the ROK’s call for a full explanation from the DPRK,” the spokesperson said.

This story originally was published by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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