Kim Jong Nam death: murder trial begins in Malaysia

Kim Jong Nam had antidote to lethal nerve agent with him when he died

1 December 2017

The murdered half-brother of North Korea leader Kim Jong Un had the antidote to the nerve agent that killed him in his bag when he died, a Malaysian court has heard.

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Airport surveillance video shows the women - Indonesian national Siti Aisyah, 25, and 29-year-old Vietnamese national Doan Thi Huong - “approaching Kim in one of the terminals”, says NPR. “One covers his face with a cloth.” Minutes later, he is seen gesturing for help before having a seizure. He died on the way to hospital.

Malaysian authorities claim the alleged killers were trained by North Korean agents to swab Kim Jong Nam’s face with the nerve agent. They have pleaded not guilty to murdering him, claiming they were duped into thinking they were participating in a prank TV show.

The Associated Press reports that prosecutors “have focused on proving the women's guilt but shied away from scrutinising any political motive behind the killing. Defence lawyers... will look to shift that focus.”

At the time of the attack, Kim Jong Nam was carrying 12 vials of atropine, which provides “primary protection against exposure to chemical nerve agents and insecticide poisoning”, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

“If you know someone is coming after you with a nerve agent, atropine is a key drug you would want to carry,” Nial Wheate, a senior lecturer in pharmaceutics at the University of Sydney, told CNN.

The presence of the antidote in the murdered man’s bag when he died “adds another twist to a case which dominated headlines worldwide”, says the broadcaster.

Kim Jong Nam, who was living in exile in Macau, “had criticised his family’s dynastic rule of North Korea”, says The Guardian, which reports that according to some South Korean lawmakers, “his brother had issued a standing order for his execution”.

According to Michael Madden, an expert on North Korea’s leadership, while Kim Jong Nam “did not have much of a power base” inside the country, “his heritage would have made him a threat were he to challenge his half-brother”.

Kim Jong Nam: accused assassins plead not guilty

02 October

Two women have pleaded not guilty to assassinating the estranged half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

Indonesian national Siti Aisyah, 25, and 29-year-old Vietnamese national Doan Thi Huong arrived at the Malaysian High Court this morning for the first day of what is sure to become one of the country’s most talked-about murder trials.

If found guilty, they face a mandatory death sentence under the Malaysian criminal code.

At this morning’s opening hearing, “the murder charge was first read in the Indonesian language to Siti, who was wearing a traditional Malay dress”, says the Straits Times. It was then read to Huong. Both women maintain their innocence.

Kim, who lived on the Chinese territory of Macau, collapsed in Kuala Lumpur airport on 13 February after allegedly being ambushed by two assailants armed with deadly nerve agent VX. He died shortly after.

The mysterious circumstances surrounding the death, which CNN places among the “most audacious assassinations of the 21st century”, drew immediate international attention, including much speculation that the killing had been orchestrated by Pyongyang.

CCTV footage captured the attack, and police apprehended Aisyah and Huong days later. Their bizarre account only intensified interest in the case, with both women claiming that they thought they were participating in a TV prank show.

Neither of them had any apparent connection to North Korea or to international espionage. “Ms Aisyah worked as a nightclub hostess and Ms Huong as an ‘entertainment outlet employee’,” the Financial Times reports.

However, Malaysian officials will argue that the women were trained to kill under the eye of North Korean agents. The charges against the two women state that their actions “show mutual intent to cause the death of the deceased”.

One of the lawyers representing Huong, Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, told CNN that his client “looks forward to the trial, where her innocence will be established”.

The prosecution is expected to go on until November, and the defence will make its case in the new year.

Kim Jong-nam murder: Malaysia sends North Korean suspects home

31 March

Three North Koreans wanted for questioning over the murder of Kim Jong-nam have been allowed to leave Malaysia in return for the release of three Malaysian diplomats being held by Pyongyang.

North Korea instigated a travel ban on Malaysians this month in retaliation for the investigation and for Kuala Lumpur's ban on North Koreans entering or leaving the country, says Reuters, trapping the three diplomats and members of their families in Pyongyang.

However, after weeks of impasse, the two countries agreed to lift the bans and the group flew home on a Malaysian air force jet this morning, while the North Koreans flew out.

Reports say they took with them the body of Kim, who had not lived in North Korea since 2003 and had two wives, a mistress and at least three children living in China.

Malaysian police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said: "We have obtained whatever we wanted from [the suspects]. They have been assisted us and they have been allowed to leave."

However, analyst Andrei Lankov, of Kookmin University in South Korea, said this was "clearly" a "win" for the North.

Two women believed to have killed Kim by smearing the toxic nerve agent VX on his face are still being held in custody in Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia is also searching for another five men, four of whom are believed to have returned to North Korea on the day of the murder, while the fifth was arrested, held for a week and released, allegedly due to insufficient evidence.

North Korea blames US and South Korea for death of Kim Jong-nam

14 March

Pyongyang denies any role in killing of its leader's half-brother in Malaysia

North Korea has refused to accept responsibility for the killing of Kim Jong-nam, instead shifting the blame to the US and South Korea which it says are trying to tarnish the country’s image.

North Korea's deputy UN ambassador, Kim In Ryong, told a news conference that the two countries were "groundlessly blaming" Pyongyang, reports USA Today.

He said: "From A to Z, this case is the product of reckless moves of the United States and South Korean authorities".

Kim, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, died after two women smeared his face with a potent nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia last month.

The two women have been charged with murder but claim they were duped into thinking they were playing a harmless prank.

There is widespread suspicion that the authorities in North Korea are responsible, reports the BBC.

Three suspects are believed to be hiding in the North Korean embassy in Malaysia.

Kim's body has been embalmed and will be kept in a mortuary for a maximum of three weeks for his relatives to claim, the Telegraph says.

The death has sparked a series of diplomatic spats between Malaysia and North Korea. This week, Malaysian decided to deport 50 North Koreans for overstaying their visas despite having banned all North Koreans from leaving the country, the BBC writes.

The ban was imposed in response to a similar move by North Korea which has left nine Malaysian nationals stranded.

Kim Jong-nam: 11 Malaysians trapped in North Korea

7 March

Armed police surround North Korea's embassy in Kuala Lumpur as both countries issue travel bans on each other's citizens.

North Korea and Malaysia have banned each other's citizens from leaving their countries, a day after the two nations expelled the other's ambassador.

In a significant escalation of the diplomatic row that has followed the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's estranged half-brother Kim Jong-nam, North Korea's foreign ministry this morning declared any Malaysians in the country were "temporarily prohibited" from leaving.

It is believed there are 11 Malaysians now trapped in the hermit country: three embassy staff and two United Nations employees, together with their families, the Straits Times reports.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak condemned the measure "in the strongest possible terms" and accused Pyongyang of "effectively holding our citizens hostage".

Despite labelling the ban an "abhorrent act", he added he had no choice but to respond in kind.

Deputy Prime Minister Dr Ahmad Zahid later clarified the travel ban only applies to diplomatic staff and that the several hundred North Korean citizens working and studying in Malaysia are not affected.

Soon after the Razak's announcement, the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur was cordoned off by armed police, the Malaysian Star reports.

Inspector General Khalid Abu Bakar said he believes at least two North Koreans linked to the assassination are currently holed up inside the embassy.

Kim Jong-nam died after being attacked in Kuala Lumpur airport last month, in what is widely believed to have been an assassination coordinated from Pyongyang.

Two women, one from Indonesia and the other from Vietnam, have been charged with his murder, but detectives still want to question several North Korean nationals.

Pyongyang has denied any involvement and refused to cooperate with the investigation.

Ambassador Kang Chol "attempted to block the investigation and prevent an autopsy on Kim Jong-nam's body", which revealed he had died after being exposed to deadly nerve agent VX, The Guardian reports.

Kim Jong-nam: Malaysia cracks down on North Korea

2 March

Malaysia is to revoke its policy of visa-free entry for North Koreans and deport a North Korean held in connection with the killing of Kim Jong-nam, as diplomatic relations between the two countries continue to cool.

Police say there is "insufficient evidence" to charge Ri Jong-chol, who has been held in detention for two weeks over the suspected assassination. However, he will be deported from Malaysia "as he has no valid travel documents", the Straits Times reports.

Kim, the estranged half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, died of exposure to the deadly nerve agent VX on 13 February in Kuala Lumpur airport, where he was awaiting a flight to Macau. Two women, Doan Thi Huong from Vietnam and Siti Aisyah from Indonesia, have been charged his Kim's murder.

The pair, who maintain they believed they were taking part in a harmless prank, arrived at court wearing bulletproof vests on Wednesday to hear the charges against them.

At least two North Korean nationals who the police wish to interview have taken refuge in the North Korean embassy, "presenting the Malaysian authorities with a daunting challenge as they try to crack a case with major international ramifications", says the New York Times.

Deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has announced that, in the interests of national security, North Korean visitors will need to apply for a visa to enter Malaysia. The order, which comes into effect on Monday, could affect around 1,000 North Koreans currently living and working in Malaysia.

The cancellation of visa-free entry is the latest manifestation of the "major fallout" from the assassination, says Al Jazeera.

North Korea has already dismissed as an "absurdity" the toxicology report which identified VX as the cause of Kim's death, attacked the Malaysian investigation as "political" and demanded that Kim's body be handed over to North Korea, which Malaysia says it cannot do until it has been officially identified with a DNA match from a relative.

The mortuary where the body is being held was subsequently the target of an attempted break-in and is now being guarded by special forces.

Kim Jong-nam: Two suspects face death by hanging

28 February

Two women arrested in connection with the assassination of Kim Jong-nam will face the death penalty if they are found guilty of murder, Malaysian officials said.

Attorney general Mohamed Apandi Ali told the Straits Times that Siti Aisyah, 28, from Indonesia, and Doan Thi Huong, 25, from Vietnam, will be charged with murder on Wednesday.

In Malaysia, murder carries a mandatory punishment of execution by hanging, although state governors or the head of state, Sultan Muhammad V, can grant clemency.

Kim, the exiled half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jon-un, collapsed and died on 13 February, after being exposed to the potent nerve agent VX. CCTV footage shows two women approach him at Kuala Lumpur airport, with one placing her hands on his face before they both flee.

Aisyah and Huong claim they were paid to participate in what they thought was a TV prank when they approached Kim Jong-nam. However, Malaysian officials say they have evidence the women were trained and rehearsed the deadly attack.

VX is "the most potent known nerve agent", says Straits Times, and is "considered a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations". It has not yet been explained how the women were able to apply the toxic substance without harming themselves.

"Regardless of whether they did or did not know of the murder plot, both appear to have been viewed as expendable by whoever gave them the VX," says Al Jazeera.

A Malaysian national who was also arrested has since been released on bail, while a North Korean man remains in custody. At least seven North Koreans, including a senior diplomat at the pariah state's Malaysian embassy, are wanted in connection with the attack.

Kim Jong-nam 'poisoned by VX nerve agent'

24 February

Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was killed by a highly toxic nerve agent, Malaysian toxicologists claim.

Kim died on 13 February, after a brief altercation with two women in a check-in hall at Kuala Lumpur airport. CCTV footage appears to show one woman wiping something on his face.

Malaysia now says toxicology reports indicate he was attacked with a highly toxic VX nerve agent, which is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations, of which North Korea is not a member.

VX, a tasteless and odourless liquid, is the most potent of the known chemical warfare agents. A drop on the skin can kill in minutes.

"The revelation that a banned weapon was used in such a high-profile killing raises the stakes over how Malaysia and the international community will respond," says The New York Times.

Malaysia's police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said that one of the women in the CCTV footage had also fallen ill and "was vomiting". Police intend to decontaminate all areas the suspects are known to have visited as a security measure.

Officials are now investigating how the nerve agent was brought into the country. "If the amount of the chemical brought in was small, it would be difficult for us to detect," Khalid said.

South Korea has suggested the killing was the work of the Pyongyang, a claim North Korea has strongly denied.

The hermit country also accused Malaysia of having "sinister" purposes after Malaysian authorities queried Kim Jong-un's involvement in planning the assassination.

Kim Jong-nam assassination: What is North Korea saying?

23 February

After a ten-day silence, North Korea's state media has spoken out about the death of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of leader Kim Jong-un, accusing Malaysia of fabricating evidence for a "sinister" purpose.

Kim was travelling through Kuala Lumpur airport on Monday 13 February when two women allegedly rubbed poison in his face. He later collapsed and died.

"The very public killing of Mr Kim appears to be another remarkable episode in the annals of bizarre North Korean behaviour, a whodunit with geopolitical implications," says the New York Times. "Speculation swirled that he had been killed to remove him from the line of succession in North Korea."

But the hermit kingdom has hit back and denied any involvement, claiming that Malaysian authorities made up evidence under the influence of its arch-rival South Korea, says the newspaper.

State-run KCNA news agency, while not naming Kim, accused Malaysia of politicising the transfer of his body "in utter disregard of international law and morality" and to "attain a sinister purpose".

It added: "The biggest responsibility for his death rests with the government of Malaysia as the citizen of the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] died in its land."

KCNA also claimed Malaysian authorities originally told North Korean diplomats that Kim died of a heart attack at the airport.

Pyongyang has demanded Malaysia halt all investigations immediately, saying the autopsy and forensic examination of the body were conducted "in an illegal and immoral manner".

Malaysia has refused to hand over the body until it is identified by DNA or next of kin.

"The remarks look set to strain ties further between the two nations, which until now maintained cordial relations including reciprocal visa-free travel," says the Financial Times.

Two women, one Indonesian and one Vietnamese, as well as a North Korean national have been arrested. Authorities are hunting for seven more North Koreans, including a senior official at the embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Four are believed to be back in Pyongyang.

Kim Jong-nam: Break-in attempt at Malaysian mortuary

22 February

Malaysian officials have stepped up security around the body of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un's half-brother after a break-in attempt at the Kuala Lumpur hospital where he is being held.

Police Inspector-General Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said: "We knew there were attempts by someone to break into the hospital mortuary," told a press conference.

Although he would not name any suspects, the police chief said they were aware of the identity of the perpetrator, the Malay Mail reports.

Special forces personnel are now guarding the body, which is still awaiting DNA identification and autopsy results.

Authorities are also seeking an interview with two North Koreans believed to still be in Malaysia - an employee of state airline Air Koryo and a high-ranking diplomat, "the second secretary of the embassy," Khalid said, adding: "They're not in custody. They've been called in for assistance."

Pyongyang has demanded that Kim Jong-nam's body be handed over. However, under Malaysian law, identification cannot be completed until a relative comes forward to give a DNA sample matching that of the deceased.

Kim Jong-nam collapsed and died on Monday 13 February after an encounter with two women at Kuala Lumpur airport while waiting for a flight to Macau, where he lived with his wife and two children.

Police have arrested Doan Thi Huong, 28, from Vietnam, and 25-year-old Indonesian Siti Aishah, together with her Malaysian boyfriend.

Aishah told police she believed she was participating in a TV prank show when she approached Kim Jong-nam and covered his face with her hands, which apparently contained a deadly toxin.

However, investigators are sceptical, says the Malaysian Star.

Inspector-General Khalid said: "We are ruling out the possibility that the women thought the attack was a prank or even that they believed they were shooting a television show."

Another suspect, 47-year-old North Korean national Ri Jong Chol, has also been taken in for questioning. A total of seven North Koreans are being sought over the suspected assassination.

Kim Jong-nam assassination: CCTV shows moment of attack

20 February

A video apparently showing the moment that Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, was assassinated in Kuala Lumpur airport last Monday has been leaked to the press.

The CCTV footage, first broadcast on Japanese TV, shows him walking through the airport and stopping to look at the departures board, before being approached by two women. One appears to lunge at him from behind, placing her hands briefly over his face.

Kim Jong-nam is then shown talking to police officers, who escort him to the airport's medical clinic.

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The 45-year-old died on his way to hospital after being sprayed in the face with a substance thought to be the deadly poison ricin.

Malaysian police later arrested two women: 25-year-old Siti Aishah from Indonesia and 28-year-old Doan Thi Huong from Vietnam.

South Korean investigators initially believed the two women were agents working on behalf of the North Korean regime, but a far stranger tale has since emerged. Aishah, a single mother who had travelled to Malaysia to find work, reportedly told detectives she thought she was participating in a harmless prank when she approached Kim Jong-nam.

Aishah claimed she had been offered money to trick men into closing their eyes before spraying them with water for a TV prank show. Her boyfriend, a Malaysian national, has also been arrested.

Malaysia's deputy inspector-general Noor Rashid Ibrahim told reporters that four North Koreans who left Malaysia on the day of the killing are being sought by police, CNN reports. One North Korean national, Ri Jong Chol, was arrested on Friday.

The unusual case has "sparked a diplomatic row between Pyongyang and Kuala Lumpur" over Kim Jong-nam's body, says the South China Morning Post, with the North Korean ambassador accusing Malaysian investigators of being motivated by a "political aim".

North Korea has demanded that the body be immediately handed over, but this cannot be done until it has been formally identified, which under Malaysian rules involves a family member providing a DNA sample matching that of the deceased. So far, no blood relative has come forward.

Kim Jong-nam assassination: What do we know so far?

16 February

Two women have been arrested in connection with the assassination of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un's half-brother, Kim Jong-nam, at Kuala Lumpur airport on Monday.

Police stopped a 28-year-old woman carrying Vietnamese travel documents bearing the name Doan Thi Huong as she attempted to board a plane at the airport on Wednesday, the Malaysian Star reports.

The second suspect, aged 25, was picked up in the early hours of Thursday, according to CNN. She was reportedly in possession of an Indonesian passport under the name Siti Aishah.

Kim, 46, collapsed after apparently being splashed or sprayed in the face with a substance by two women in the departure lounge of Kuala Lumpur airport on Monday morning. He died on the way to hospital.

An autopsy suggests he was poisoned with ricin.

US and South Korean authorities said they believed the attackers were North Korean agents working on the orders of his half-brother.

Kim, the eldest son of former North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il, was once seen as likely to take over as leader of the hermit kingdom but fell out of favour in 2001, after being caught using a fake passport to travel to Tokyo Disneyland.

He lived a relatively quiet life since being sent into exile, raising two children in Macau and preferring gambling and fine wines to politics, says the South China Morning Post.

Nonetheless, there has been a "standing order" for his death in place ever since Kim Jong-un acceded to power in 2011, two South Korean lawmakers told The Guardian.

Kim apparently begged his half-brother to call off the order in 2012, after surviving an assassination attempt in Macau.

He had been in hiding following the 2013 execution of their uncle, Jang Song-thaek, on Kim Jong-un's orders.

Shortly before his death, Kim "confided in close friends that he felt like he was living on borrowed time", the South China Morning Post reports.

What led to the assassination of Kim Jong-un's half-brother?

15 February

The half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has died in Malaysia, in what appears to be an assassination ordered by the secretive regime.

Kim Jong-nam was attacked by two women in Kuala Lumpur airport. The women, believed to be North Korean agents, then escaped in a taxi, South Korean broadcaster TV Chosun reports.

Exactly how the attack occurred is still unclear. Police said Kim had been sprayed in the face with an unidentified liquid before complaining of "extreme pain" and being rushed to hospital, where he died. Witnesses earlier suggested he was attacked with needles.

After hours of conflicting reports, a source close to the Malaysian Prime Minister's office confirmed Kim Jong-nam's death to the BBC. His body was undergoing an autopsy, the source said, which would involve a toxicology report.

The 46-year-old, sometimes known as "Kim Chol", was the eldest child of former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. For years considered heir apparent, his fortunes turned after he was arrested in May 2001, for using a fake passport at Tokyo airport, apparently en route to Disneyland.

After going into exile, Kim repeatedly advocated Chinese-style economic reform in North Korea while publicly opposing the dynastic transfer of power. He survived an assassination attempt in Macau in 2011 and had been in hiding following the execution in 2013 of his uncle, Jang Song-thaek, on Kim Jong-un's orders.

Since rising to power following the death of his father in 2011, Kim Jong-un has proved ruthless in removing enemies and rivals.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Bong Youngshik, a North Korean expert at Yonsei University in Seoul said if it were proven Pyongyang had orchestrated the assassination, it would mean Kim Jong-un "has absolute control over every nook and cranny of the North Korean system".

"This is the final touch in consolidating power. We must now pay more attention to him for there are no other checks and balances," he said.

Bong also said the development could mean that, having demonstrated his power, the North Korean leader might now feel he has the latitude to strike a deal with US President Donald Trump without appearing weak.