North Korea, Citing Kim Jong-nam Dispute, Blocks Malaysians From Exiting
In its statement Tuesday, North Korea said it would "temporarily ban the exit of Malaysian citizens" until the safety of North Korean diplomats and citizens in Malaysia is "fully guaranteed through the fair settlement of the case
that occurred in Malaysia," the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported.
North was that However, protecting our citizens is my first priority,
and we will not hesitate to take all measures necessary when they are threatened.
Duyeon Kim, a Seoul-based nonresident fellow at Georgetown University’s Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, said on Tuesday
that North Korea was "playing dirty and not diplomatically, apparently hoping this might force Malaysia to reverse its findings" about Mr. Kim’s killing.
Sivananthan Nithyanantham said that If we break diplomatic ties, then all the embassy staff have to leave Malaysia,
but the staff with diplomatic immunity at the time of the offense is still safe and must be allowed to leave,
But it has rejected the findings of the Malaysian police
that Mr. Kim was poisoned by VX nerve agent at the Malaysian capital’s international airport on Feb. 13, and it has demanded that his body be handed over to the North Korean Embassy.
Malaysian officials said there were 11 Malaysians in North Korea who could be affected by the North
Korean ban, including embassy staff, their family members and two United Nations workers.