SEOUL More
details are surfacing in the apparent assassination of Kim Jong Nam, the half
brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un who was killed earlier this week in
Malaysia.
South
Korea on Wednesday confirmed the victim was indeed the North Korean leader’s
older half brother, who was once in line to become head of state, but fell out
of favor with their father, Kim Jong Il, after he tried to enter Japan on a
forged passport to visit Tokyo Disneyland in 2001.
“It
seems assured that the person who was killed was Kim Jong Nam,” said Jeong
Joon-hee, the South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman.
Investigation
The
Malaysian police report issued on Tuesday night confirmed a 46-year-old North
Korean man, who was traveling with a passport under the name of Kim Chol, died
en route to a hospital after seeking medical help in the Kuala Lumpur
International Airport. His travel destination on Tuesday was Macau, where he
had been living, said the Malaysian police.
On
Tuesday unnamed U.S. government sources said the U.S. strongly believes that
Kim Jong Nam was murdered by North Korean agents.
The
South Korean National Intelligence Service (NIS) on Wednesday confirmed that
Kim Jong Nam was poisoned by two suspected North Korean female agents, using
toxic tipped needles, or sprayed with an unidentified liquid in his face, or
with a chemically treated cloth.The unidentified assailants then reportedly
fled in a taxi and are currently at large.
Malaysian
police investigating the attack said the cause of Kim's death was not yet known
and a post-mortem would soon be carried out. His body was taken on Wednesday
morning to a second hospital, where an autopsy was being performed. North
Korean embassy officials were also on scene at the hospital and were
coordinating with local authorities, police sources said.
Motives
There
is widespread speculation that Kim Jong Nam’s death was ordered by high ranking
officials in Pyongyang, and very likely by Kim Jong Un himself.
“If it
is proved that Kim Jong Nam's death was committed by the North Korean
government, it will be a case that shows the brutality and inhumanity of the
Kim Jong Un regime,” said South Korean acting President and Prime Minister
Hwang Kyo-ahn.
Kim
Jong Nam was reportedly considered a threat to his brother’s rule because of
his outspoken criticism of the continued repressive and authoritarian practices
within the country, because he was a proponent of reform polices that would
loosen state controls, and because there was speculation that Chinese President
Xi Jinping would prefer to see him replace his younger brother as the leader of
North Korea.
South Korea’s spy agency said Wednesday that Kim Jong Un had
issued a "standing order" for his half-brother's assassination, and
that there had been a failed attempt in 2012. Kim Jong Nam had been living
under Beijing's protection with his second wife in the Chinese territory of
Macau.
North Korean defector and analyst
Ahn Chan-il, with the World Institute for North Korean Studies, said it is
likely that North Korean spies, embedded within the large number of laborers
that work in Malaysia’s mineral and mining industry, had learned of the older
Kim’s travel plans and decided to target him while he was outside of China’s protection.
“(I think) North Korea may have put spies within these laborers.
And while the two women are suspected to be members of (the North’s)
reconnaissance bureau, it is highly possible that more than ten people belonged
to other bureaus that may be involved in this case,” said Ahn Chan-il.
The South Korean government on Wednesday also urged all North
Korean defectors to take extra precautions for their own safety and security.
Reign of
Terror
If proven, the sanctioned assassination of Kim Jong Un’s brother
could further isolate a leadership in Pyongyang that is already struggling
under harsh sanctions for its continued development of nuclear weapons and for
widespread human rights violations.
South Korea's Institute for National Security in December 2016
claimed that Kim Jong Un has ordered the execution of 340 people since he came
to power in December 2011. In 2013, he sentenced to death his uncle, Jang Song
Thaek, once considered his mentor and the country's second-most-powerful man,
for what the North alleged was treason.
For the next several days, North Korea will be marking the
birthday of its late leader Kim Jong Il, the brothers' father, though they have
different mothers. The major holiday this Thursday is called the “Day of the
Shining Star'' and will feature figure skating and synchronized swimming
exhibitions, fireworks and mass rallies.
Youmi Kim
contributed to this report.
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