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Post by Admin on Mar 5, 2015 22:23:13 GMT
The U.S. Ambassador to South Korea received 80 stitches in his face after he was attacked by a knife-wielding assailant Thursday morning in Seoul. The attacker is an ultra-nationalist political activist who claims he acted alone. Ambassador Mark Lippert, 42, was listed in stable condition Thursday after undergoing surgery at the Sinchon Severance Hospital in Seoul to repair lacerations to his face and left hand. The hospital director Jung Nam-shik said the ambassador needed stitches to close the deep gash to his face. Jung said the gash on Lippert's face was about 11 centimeters (4 inches) long and 3 centimeters (1 inch) deep, located from his right cheekbone to jaw. He added that there was no major damage to Lippert's facial nerves or salivary glands. Doctors also treated his thumb and two fingers on left hand that were cut during the attack. The Associated Press reported that surgery was performed to repair tendon and nerve damage. The attack happened about 7:40 a.m. local time Thursday (2240 GMT Wednesday). Later Thursday, Lippert wrote on his Twitter account that he is doing well and is in great spirits. U.S. President Barack Obama spoke with Lippert after the attack, wishing him a speedy recovery, said White House national security spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan. The U.S. State Department "strongly condemns" the attack, spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement. "The U.S.-ROK alliance is strong; we will not be deterred by senseless acts of violence. " Kerry, who was in Saudi Arabia for meetings with Gulf state officials, said, "The United States of America will never be intimidated or deterred by threats or by anybody who harms any American diplomats." Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy said in a statement that he was "heartsick ... about the senseless attack on Mark. ... He is as devoted a public servant as they come, a great credit to both of our countries." Lippert served as a former policy aide to Leahy. Michael Lammbrau of the Arirang Institute think-tank was at the meeting and told Reuters, "The guy comes in. ... He yells something, goes up to the ambassador and slashes him in the face.” Lammbrau said Kim shouted about Korean independence while he was being restrained. "It sounded like he was anti-American, anti-imperialist, that kind of stuff," he said. "The ambassador fought him from his seat. ... There was a trail of blood behind him," Lammbrau told Reuters. U.S. ambassadors have security details, but the size largely depends on the threat level of the post, the AP reported.
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Post by Admin on May 24, 2015 21:01:58 GMT
North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un’s older brother has reportedly been spotted at an Eric Clapton gig at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Kim Jong-Chol, who was reportedly overlooked as the next leader of North Korea by his tyrant father Kim Jong-il because he was "too girly”, can’t get enough of old Slowhand and has travelled the world to see him perform. This video shows a man believed to be the 33-year-old at the venue wearing a grey t-shirt and trendy black jacket. The North Korean Embassy in London could neither confirm or deny Jong-Chol was in the country. Tickets to Clapton's sell-out 70th birthday gigs cost between £100 and £288. While North Korean citizens routinely starve, Jong-Chol enjoys a jet set playboy lifestyle. He is believed to have stayed at the plush Chelsea Harbour Hotel, where rooms can cost up to £2,100 for a single night. In 2011 he slipped out of super-secretive Communist North Korea, where his brother rules with an iron fist, and popped over to Singapore to catch Clapton in action. He was also spotted at a Clapton gig in Germany five years before that. Despite the best efforts of bodyguards, the man said to be Jong-Chol was caught on camera as he enjoyed the latest concert. Wearing ear piercings and dressed in black, the man grinned as Clapton belted out the hits.
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Post by Admin on Aug 11, 2015 20:30:13 GMT
Britain's Foreign Secretary has condemned North Korea over landmine blasts which injured two South Korean soldiers close to the demilitarised zone. Speaking to reporters during a two-day trip to South Korea, Philip Hammond said the blasts "threatened stability in this region". "We've condemned this unprovoked attack. And North Koreans must be held to account for the breach of the armistice," he said. South Korea has accused its neighbour of sneaking soldiers across the border and laying mines, three of which were triggered by members of a border patrol on Tuesday last week. One soldier had both his legs amputated, while another also had one leg removed. South Korea said it had swept the area where the blast took place and the terrain made it impossible for mines to have moved due to rain or shifting soil. Seoul has reacted by resuming border propaganda operations after a more than 10-year hiatus, including using powerful loudspeakers to blare out messages and strengthening border security.
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Post by Admin on Sept 8, 2015 20:16:36 GMT
Taylor Pemberton has just spent four days in North Korea, the secretive military state said to be preparing for war with its neighbour South Korea. The 26-year-old from Minneapolis in the US flew into Pyongyang from Beijing in China. And he documented his trip with a series of fascinating photographs which he later posted on Instagram. He was constantly monitored but, away from the parades and flags, managed to capture images of everyday life. On arrival tourists must declare any communication devices, any art or literature or even food. "My cameras, memory cards, and phones were screened on entry," he told Newsbeat "You are told when to wake up, when meals are available, and when your day is coming to an end," Taylor explained. "You're also strictly informed when it's OK/not OK to take photos. "Each night you're granted 'leisure time' but you're limited to roaming inside your hotel that's strategically placed on an island." There is no internet in North Korea and Taylor told Newsbeat that locals he talked to simply weren't aware of the concept. Tourist guides who interact with foreigners "know a few details but are basically unaware of the magnitude the internet brings to popular culture," Taylor explained. The country only has an "intranet" of resources provided by the government.
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Post by Admin on Sept 20, 2015 20:00:54 GMT
Favourite artists of the solitary fan - who is watching the channel with increasing regularity - include pop sensation Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran, according to chiefs. They also reportedly love watching presenter Nick Grimshaw interviewing Harry Potter star Emma Watson. Sources are convinced that the lone viewer is the tubby tyrant himself – because North Koreans are banned from receiving foreign media by the barmy dictator. One source said: "The viewer can only be dictator Kim Jong-un." The loony leader is known to be an avid fan of Western pop culture and has a particular love for Jackie Chan films. Kim has previously been caught with a smartphone, prompting speculation he was using a product made by arch nemesis South Korea. The phone was spotted in a photo of the dictator while he was chairing a meeting - prompting South Korea to draft in experts to figure out whether he was using a Samsung. A Seoul government official said at the time: "Kim and his family members as well as the North's political elite appear to use smartphones or other mobile phones capable of accessing the internet."
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