N. Korea, Malaysia Lock Horns Over Apparent Killing
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- A dispute over custody of a slain North Korean's body pushed two governments further apart Saturday as they tried to navigate the aftermath of what appeared to be the assassination of an outcast member of North Korea's ruling elite.
Kim Jong Nam, who was 45 or 46 and had lived in exile for years, suddenly fell ill at the Kuala Lumpur airport on Monday as he waited for a flight home to Macau. Dizzy and in pain, he told medical workers at the airport he had been sprayed with a chemical. He died while being taken to a hospital.
Malaysia performed an autopsy Wednesday over the strong objections of North Korea, which asserted sovereignty over the body of its citizen and says it should have a say in what happens next.
A Malaysian official with knowledge of the investigation said medical workers started a second autopsy Friday night because results of the first one were inconclusive. He asked that his name not be used because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
Senior Malaysian police official Abdul Samah Mat denied the second autopsy had taken place, however. "No such thing as a second post-mortem," he said when asked. He said the results of the first autopsy were not yet r el eased .
Meanwhile, North Korea vowed to reject the results of any post-mortem. Speaking to reporters outside the morgue late Friday, Pyongyang's ambassador said Malaysian officials may be "trying to conceal something" and "colluding with hostile forces."
The intrigue over the case raises all sorts of questions about the mysterious death of Kim Jong Nam, but a lack of closure and a lingering sense of the unknown aren't unusual when it comes to North Korea. While South Korea has blamed North Korea for a slew of notable assassinations or attempted killings in past decades, the North often denies involvement or simply doesn't comment.
The death of Kim Jong Nam, the exiled half brother of North Korea's powerful and mercurial ruler, has unleashed a torrent of speculation, tales of intrigue and explosive, unconfirmed reports from dueling nations.
Malaysia has arrested four people so far, the latest a man carrying an ID that identified him as 46-year-old Ri Jong Chol. He was picked up Friday night. Authorities were still trying to piece together details of the case. South Korea has accused its enemies in North Korea of dispatching a hit squad to kill Kim Jong Nam at the airport in Kuala Lumpur, saying two female assassins poisoned him and then fled in a taxi.