Police in Malaysia said Wednesday they want to question a senior diplomat from the North Korean embassy in their ongoing investigation into the recent killing of Kim Jong-nam. This twist suggests the possible involvement of the North Korean government in the deadly poisoning of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s estranged half brother.
Khalid Abu Bakar, the inspector general of the Malaysian police, at a news conference about the killing of Kim Jong-nam, in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. Credit Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters
From the New York Times:
At a news conference in which investigators gave their fullest public account to date of the killing, the police also said the attackers had been trained to wipe toxins on the face of the half brother, Kim Jong-nam, and then wash their hands after the attack at the Kuala Lumpur airport on Feb. 13.
The revelations are sure to escalate pressure on North Korea over a killing that South Korean officials have branded “a terrorist attack” and to further inflame Malaysia’s relations with the North. Pyongyang has refused to acknowledge that the man killed was Kim Jong-nam and has accused Malaysia of carrying out a politically motivated investigation.
Khalid Abu Bakar, the police inspector general, said Wednesday that North Korean officers had put toxins on the hands of the two female attackers, one of whom has been identified as Vietnamese and the other Indonesian.
He said seven North Koreans were now suspected of being involved in the attack, with four having fled to their homeland and two others — the embassy official, identified as the second secretary at the embassy, and an employee of the North Korean airline Air Koryo — still believed to be in Malaysia.
The North Korean government refuses to acknowledge the identify of the deceased.
North Korea has instead identified him as Kim Chol, saying he held a diplomatic passport and rejecting Malaysia’s efforts to involve the victim’s family in identifying the body.