NoKor troops KILL SOKOR OFfiCIAL, burn his body
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea said Thursday North Korean troops fatally shot a South Korean government official who may have attempted to defect and set his body on fire, after they found him on a floating object near the disputed sea boundary.
South Korean officials held a series of news conferences condemning what they called North Korea’s “atrocious acts” and urging it to apologize and punish those responsible. It’s unlikely for North Korea to accept the South Korean demand, and the rivals’ ties — already strained amid a deadlock in a broader nuclear diplomacy — would suffer a further setback, observers say.
According to Seoul, the man disappeared from a government ship that was checking on potential unauthorized fishing in an area south of the boundary on Monday, a day before he was found in North Korean waters.
North Korea sent officials wearing gas masks aboard a boat near the man to learn why he was there on Tuesday afternoon. Later in the day, a North Korean navy boat came and opened fire at him, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said.
Sailors from the boat, putting on gas masks and protective suits, poured gasoline on his body and set it aflame, the Defense Ministry said, citing intelligence gathered by surveillance equipment and other assets.
It’s unclear how he ended up in the North. But a defense official said the man might have tried to defect to North Korea, citing acquired information that he refused to elaborate. The official, requesting anonymity citing department rules, said the official was wearing a life jacket on a small floating object when he was found in North Korean waters.
The official said North Korea may have determined to kill him in line with its stringent anti- coronavirus rules that involves shooting anyone illegally crossing the border.
Gen. Robert Abrams, the commander of U.S. troops in South Korea, said last month that North Korea had put special forces along its border with China to keep smugglers out and that they had “shoot-to-kill orders in place” aimed at preventing the virus from entering the country.
North Korea has steadfastly said there hasn’t been a single virus case on its territory, a claim widely disputed by many foreign experts. Observers say a pandemic could cause devastating consequences in North Korea because of its broken public health care system and a chronic shortage of medical supplies.
South Korea sent a message to North Korea via a communication channel at the U.S .- led U. N. Command in South Korea on Wednesday to ask about the missing official. But North Korea hasn’t responded, according to the South Korean Defense Ministry.