South Korea has accused North Korean agents of being behind the sudden death of Kim Jong Nam — son of former dictator Kim Jong Il — on February 15 in Kuala Lumpur airport.
Kim was reportedly grabbed from behind and a poison liquid or rag put in his face, in an act South Korean lawmakers said was “terrorism” by the North.
If these allegations are true, it won’t be the first time Pyongyang has used covert operatives overseas to carry out its aims, sometimes with deadly results.
Bombing of Korean Air Flight 858
On November 29, 1987, Korean Air Flight 858 exploded in mid-air, killing all 115 people on board.
Two North Koreans planted a bomb in the overhead locker during a layover in Abu Dhabi. It exploded after both had disembarked and the plane was over the Andaman Sea en route to Bangkok.
After the bombers were traced by police to Bahrain, they attempted to kill themselves by taking cyanide pills. One bomber, Kim Hyon-hui, survived however, and was extradited to South Korea.
In Seoul, Kim confessed to carrying out the attack and was sentenced to death, but she was later pardoned by President Roh Tae-woo on the grounds she had been brainwashed by North Korea, something Kim expanded on in a book dedicated to the victims of the bombing, ” The Tears of My Soul. ”
Speaking to an Australian television program in 2013 , Kim said she had to live in secret due to threats from North Korean agents who view her as a traitor.
Attempted assassination of Park Sang-hak
For over seven years , defector Park Sang-hak has sent balloons carrying leaflets criticizing the North Korean regime over the border from South Korea.
Pyongyang has threatened violent reprisals against the South for the practice, and in November 2012, it came after Park himself.
A North Korean assassin attempted to kill Park on the streets of Seoul using a pen modified to shoot poison-filled pellets and a small gun masquerading as a flashlight.
“You’d notice a gun, but these weapons are so innocuous, you can easily kill someone, I’d be dead immediately,” Park told CNN in 2012 .
Fortunately for him, the would-be assassin was arrested on his way to Park, who was then given around the clock protection by police.
