N. Korea: U.S. ambassador attack 'just punishment'
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US Ambassador Mark Lippert was in stable condition after a man screaming demands for a unified North and South Korea slashed him on the face and wrist with a knife. AP
North Korea called the knife attack on the U.S. ambassador to South Korea on Thursday "just punishment" for U.S. military exercises with its southern neighbor.
Ambassador Mark Lippert was slashed in the face early Thursday while speaking at a breakfast forum in Seoul.
Referring to the weapon as the "knife of justice," North Korea's official KCNA news agency said the attack was a valid "expression of resistance."
Lippert was cut on the right cheek by a man wielding a blade, according to witnesses. He was in stable condition after surgery at a hospital in Seoul.
YTN TV reported the assailant, identified by police as Kim Ki-jong, 55, screamed, "South and North Korea should be reunified" as he launched the attack. The two Koreas have been divided for decades along the world's most heavily armed border.
Hours after the attack, Lippert tweeted: "Doing well & in great spirits!" He said he planned to return to work soon.
The attacker shouted anti-war slogans after he was detained and taken to a hospital. Seoul police said the weapon was a 10-inch blade. The U.S. State Department said in a statement Thursday that U.S. law enforcement is coordinating closely with Korean police, who are leading the investigation on the assault.
"The U.S.-ROK alliance is strong; we will not be deterred by senseless acts of violence," Department spokesperson Marie Harf said in the statement. "Ambassador Lippert looks forward to getting back to work with his Republic of Korean counterparts to strengthen our bilateral relationship and to jointly address regional and global challenges."
Kim's main grievance appeared to be purported U.S. interference in Korean affairs, the Associated Press reported.
The NK News website said the attacker has a history of violence and extreme forms of protest.
In 2010, he threw two large cinder blocks at the Japanese ambassador to Seoul, whose interpreter suffered minor injuries in the attack, the website reported. The attack was in protest of Japan's claim to disputed islands occupied by South Korea. Kim was sentenced to a three-year suspended prison term, according to local media.
Kim, who formed Uri Madang, a group that appears to be primarily opposed to foreign involvement in Korean affairs, set himself on fire in 2007 demanding the truth behind an alleged attack on a group member in 1988, NK News reported.
On Monday, South Korean officials said North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea hours before military drills between South Korea and the U.S. were due to begin. North Korea, which claims the drills are preparation for a northward invasion, warned of "merciless strikes" against its enemies, the AP reported.
In a televised briefing, Chung Nam-sik of the Severance Hospital said 80 stitches were needed to close Lippert's facial wound, which was over 4 inches long and slightly more than 1 inch deep, the AP reported. Chung also said the knife penetrated Lippert's left arm and damaged the nerves connected to his pinkie and tendons connected to his thumb.
Lippert, 42, has been ambassador to South Korea since October 2014. Prior to that he held several senior positions in the Defense Department, including chief of staff to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and assistant secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs.
A Navy reservist, Lippert served a nine-month tour on active duty in Iraq in 2008 and 2009 as an intelligence officer with the Navy SEALs' Naval Special Warfare Development Group.
Contributing: Kirk Spitzer and William M. Welch
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1BL2FBG
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N. Korea: U.S. ambassador attack 'just punishment'
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US Ambassador Mark Lippert was in stable condition after a man screaming demands for a unified North and South Korea slashed him on the face and wrist with a knife. AP
North Korea called the knife attack on the U.S. ambassador to South Korea on Thursday "just punishment" for U.S. military exercises with its southern neighbor.
Ambassador Mark Lippert was slashed in the face early Thursday while speaking at a breakfast forum in Seoul.
Referring to the weapon as the "knife of justice," North Korea's official KCNA news agency said the attack was a valid "expression of resistance."
Lippert was cut on the right cheek by a man wielding a blade, according to witnesses. He was in stable condition after surgery at a hospital in Seoul.
YTN TV reported the assailant, identified by police as Kim Ki-jong, 55, screamed, "South and North Korea should be reunified" as he launched the attack. The two Koreas have been divided for decades along the world's most heavily armed border.
Hours after the attack, Lippert tweeted: "Doing well & in great spirits!" He said he planned to return to work soon.
The attacker shouted anti-war slogans after he was detained and taken to a hospital. Seoul police said the weapon was a 10-inch blade. The U.S. State Department said in a statement Thursday that U.S. law enforcement is coordinating closely with Korean police, who are leading the investigation on the assault.
"The U.S.-ROK alliance is strong; we will not be deterred by senseless acts of violence," Department spokesperson Marie Harf said in the statement. "Ambassador Lippert looks forward to getting back to work with his Republic of Korean counterparts to strengthen our bilateral relationship and to jointly address regional and global challenges."
Kim's main grievance appeared to be purported U.S. interference in Korean affairs, the Associated Press reported.
The NK News website said the attacker has a history of violence and extreme forms of protest.
In 2010, he threw two large cinder blocks at the Japanese ambassador to Seoul, whose interpreter suffered minor injuries in the attack, the website reported. The attack was in protest of Japan's claim to disputed islands occupied by South Korea. Kim was sentenced to a three-year suspended prison term, according to local media.
Kim, who formed Uri Madang, a group that appears to be primarily opposed to foreign involvement in Korean affairs, set himself on fire in 2007 demanding the truth behind an alleged attack on a group member in 1988, NK News reported.
On Monday, South Korean officials said North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea hours before military drills between South Korea and the U.S. were due to begin. North Korea, which claims the drills are preparation for a northward invasion, warned of "merciless strikes" against its enemies, the AP reported.
In a televised briefing, Chung Nam-sik of the Severance Hospital said 80 stitches were needed to close Lippert's facial wound, which was over 4 inches long and slightly more than 1 inch deep, the AP reported. Chung also said the knife penetrated Lippert's left arm and damaged the nerves connected to his pinkie and tendons connected to his thumb.
Lippert, 42, has been ambassador to South Korea since October 2014. Prior to that he held several senior positions in the Defense Department, including chief of staff to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and assistant secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs.
A Navy reservist, Lippert served a nine-month tour on active duty in Iraq in 2008 and 2009 as an intelligence officer with the Navy SEALs' Naval Special Warfare Development Group.
Contributing: Kirk Spitzer and William M. Welch
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1BL2FBG
USA NOW
New video of Boston Marathon bombing shown at trial
Mar 05, 2015
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