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Post by Admin on Feb 22, 2017 18:54:50 GMT
Malaysian police identified a senior official in the North Korean embassy on Wednesday as a suspect in the murder of Kim Jong Nam, and said another was linked to North Korea's state airline. Police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said both suspects are still in Malaysia and have been called in for questioning. He said North Korean diplomat held the rank of second secretary at the embassy. "He's the second secretary of the embassy. ..they're not in custody, they've been called in for assistance," Khalid told reporters in a news conference. The other suspect was a staffer with Air Koryo, he said. Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, was killed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Feb. 13 while he was preparing to board a flight to Macau.
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Post by Admin on Feb 24, 2017 18:47:48 GMT
Malaysian authorities have identified the toxin that killed Kim Jong-nam at Kuala Lumpur airport as VX, which is classified as a weapon of mass destruction. Bruce Bennett, a defence expert with the Rand Corporation, dissects how this could have happened. VX is an extraordinarily potent chemical weapon. About 0.01 grams - less than a drop - on the skin can kill a man. The chemical goes through the skin and disrupts the nerve system. It is an oil-like substance; it would normally not mix well with water. So the liquid sprayed or wiped on Kim Jong-nam's face likely did not contain the VX - it was probably a diversion. That helps to explain why the women did not die despite having gotten the liquid on their hands.
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Post by Admin on Feb 26, 2017 18:53:07 GMT
The Vietnamese woman suspected of helping to kill the North Korean leader's half-brother was a keen singer whose Facebook pages featured pouting portraits and pictures of parties. Four days before Kim Jong Nam was killed at a Malaysian airport, she appears to have posted a picture of herself wearing a shirt emblazoned with the acronym " ", similar to the one on the fleeing suspect caught on CCTV cameras. Doan Thi Huong worked at an entertainment outlet, according to Malaysian police, who have arrested her over the murder of Kim Jong Nam. On a rice farm in northern Vietnam, the family whose daughter's details match those from Malaysian police said it rarely knew where she was since she left home a decade ago aged 18.
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Post by Admin on Mar 2, 2017 18:46:30 GMT
Malaysia has charged two women – an Indonesian and a Vietnamese – with the murder of Kim Jong-nam. Siti Aishah, 25, and Doan Thi Huong, 28, were presented in court by the Malaysian police on Wednesday, where charges were read out against them. Authorities are still hunting another seven North Korean suspects – four of whom fled the country the day of Kim's death and are believed to be back in North Korea. Kim's brother was smothered with the nerve gas while walking through Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia, and died of a seizure before he could reach hospital on February 13.
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Post by Admin on Mar 11, 2019 17:32:19 GMT
An Indonesian woman held for two years on suspicion of killing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother was freed from custody Monday after Malaysian prosecutors unexpectedly dropped the murder charge against her. Siti Aisyah cried and hugged her Vietnamese co-defendant, Doan Thi Huong, before leaving the courtroom and being ushered away in an embassy car. She told reporters that she had only learned Monday morning that she would be freed. “I feel very happy,” she said later at a news conference at the Indonesian Embassy. “I didn’t expect that today will be my freedom day.” The two young women were accused of smearing VX nerve agent on Kim Jong Nam’s face in an airport terminal in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 13, 2017. They have said they thought they were taking part in a prank for a TV show. They had been the only suspects in custody after four North Korean suspects fled the country the same morning Kim was killed. The High Court judge discharged Aisyah without an acquittal after prosecutors applied to drop the murder charge against her. They did not give any reason. The trial will resume Thursday, with prosecutors expected to reply to a request by Huong’s lawyers asking the government to similarly withdraw the charges against her. Indonesia’s government said its continual high-level lobbying resulted in Aisyah’s release. The foreign ministry said in a statement that she was “deceived and did not realize at all that she was being manipulated by North Korean intelligence.” It said Aisyah, a migrant worker, believed that she was part of a reality TV show and never had any intention of killing Kim.
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