SEOUL: North Korea has purged its vice foreign minister as punishment for the recent defection of the nuclear-armed country’s deputy ambassador to Britain, South Korean media reported on Wednesday. South Korea’s Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-Hee said the ministry was in the process of “verifying” the report but offered no further comment. The 72-year-old Kung is a veteran diplomat who had been looking after North Korea’s diplomacy with Russia and Europe for nearly two decades. In August, South Korea’s unification ministry confirmed that the North executed a vice premier for education for showing disrespect to the leader during a meeting. South Korea’s Yonhap news agency has put the number of party officials executed during Kim’s rule at over 100.

Source: Manila Times October 12, 2016 02:15 UTC