Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 4 June 2019
Top North Korean official reappears days after purge report

By KIM TONG-HYUNG cials, was executed with
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) four other officials from the
— A senior North Korean North's Foreign Ministry for
official who had been re- betraying Kim Jong Un af-
ported to be sentenced to ter being won over by the
hard labor over the failed United States.
nuclear summit with Wash- None of the allegedly ex-
ington was shown in state ecuted officials have ap-
media on Monday enjoy- peared in state media
ing a concert near leader since the report.
Kim Jong Un. But as ever with North Ko-
North Korean publications rea, a country that closely
on Monday showed Kim guards its secrets, there
Yong Chol sitting five seats are reasons to be cau-
away from a clapping Kim tious about the purported
Jong Un in the same row purge. South Korea's gov-
along with other top offi- ernment and media have
cials during a musical per- a mixed record on track-
formance by the wives of ing developments among
Korean People's Army of- North Korea's ruling elite,
ficers. made difficult by Pyong-
A report by Pyongyang's of- yang's stringent control of
ficial Korean Central News information about them.
Agency named Kim Yong In this March 1, 2019, file photo, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, accompanied by Kim When asked about Kim
Chol among the attendees Yong Chol, left, vice chairman of Workerʼs Party of Korea, meets Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, chair- Yong Chol's reappearance
of the event, which it said woman of Vietnam's National Assembly, at the National Assembly in Hanoi, Vietnam. in public, Lee Sang-min,
"impressively represented Associated Press spokesman for Seoul's Unifi-
the ideological and men- cation Ministry, which deals
tal features of KPA officers' clear talks with the U.S. ear- between Trump and Kim in reporting that Kim Yong with inter-Korean affairs,
wives, who make every ly last year. He traveled to broke down over what the Chol had been sentenced said the ministry would not
moment of their life honor- Washington and met Presi- United States described as to hard labor and ideo- comment on a "specific in-
able with ardent yearning dent Donald Trump twice excessive North Korean de- logical re-education over ternal event in North Korea
for the leader." before Kim's two summits mands for sanctions relief in the failed summit in Ha- or its participants." Seoul's
Kim Yong Chol has been with Trump. exchange for only a partial noi, Vietnam's capital. The spy service has said it could
North Korea's top nuclear Negotiations between surrender of its nuclear ca- newspaper also reported not confirm Friday's report
negotiator and the coun- Washington and Pyong- pabilities. that senior envoy Kim Hyok of a possible purge, while
terpart of U.S. Secretary of yang have been at a Last week, South Korean Chol, who was involved in the presidential Blue House
State Mike Pompeo since standstill since February, newspaper Chosun Ilbo cit- pre-summit working-level cautioned against "hasty
Kim Jong Un entered nu- when the second summit ed an unidentified source talks with American offi- judgments or comments."q

Afghan officials: bus bombing in capital kills 5

ployees belong to the In- tal over the last week. Four trekking across the country
dependent Administrative bombings on Sunday killed on foot calling for an end
Reform and Civil Service at least two people and to the war.
Commission. wounded 27, and were Members of the convoy
Ahmad Shah, an eyewit- preceded by deadly sui- said Taliban militants came
ness at the scene of the cide bombings on Thursday to speak with them on Sun-
attack, said: "Five to seven and Friday. day night while the group
bodies were on the street, Monday's attack took was in southern Helmand
a few of them were mar- place as the Afghan inte- province, an area largely
tyred and others were rior ministry has announced under Taliban control. The
wounded." He said some that Kabul is under tight se- convoy members said the
of the victims were "burn- curity ahead of this week's Taliban took four of them as
ing inside the bus — no one Eid-al Fitr holiday, which representatives for further
was able to enter." marks the end of the Mus- discussions, and they have
No group immediately lim fasting month of Rama- not been heard from since.
claimed responsibility for dan. A Taliban spokesman had
Security personnel inspect the site of a blast in Kabul, Afghani- the attack, but both Tal- Last June, the Taliban ac- no information about the
stan, Monday, June 3, 2019. Afghan officials say at least one
person has been killed when a sticky bomb attacked into a bus iban and Islamic State mili- cepted a three-day cease- event.
detonated in the capital Kabul. tants are active in Kabul fire over the Eid al-Fitr holi- The peace convoy march
Associated Press and have staged attacks day, a first for the group, its began in the capital of
there. but this year the Taliban Helmand province, Lashkar
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — ficials said Monday. Afghan president Ashraf have rejected any truce Gah, and has been walk-
A bomb attached into a Wahidullah Mayar, spokes- Ghani strongly condemned with the Afghan forces. ing for over a year through
bus carrying Afghan gov- man for the public health the attack in a statement In another development, different provinces. The
ernment workers has killed ministry, said the numbers sent by the presidential pal- the Taliban have abduct- protest march began with
at least five people and could still rise. Nasrat Ra- ace. ed four members of the a group of nine men and
wounded 10 others in the himi, spokesman for the in- A wave of attacks has Helmand Peace Convoy, a picked up supporters dur-
capital, Kabul, Afghan of- terior ministry, said the em- rocked the Afghan capi- group of dozens of Afghans ing the long journey.q