South Korean authorities have arrested two North Koreans on suspicion of plotting to assassinate the highest ranking North Korean official ever to defect to Seoul, officials said today.
Hwang Jang-yop, a former secretary of the North's ruling Workers Party - who once mentored leader Kim Jong Il - defected to the South in 1997. He has written books and delivered lectures condemning Kim's regime as totalitarian and now lives under police protection 24 hours a day.
The arrest came as tensions escalated after a South Korean warship mysteriously exploded and sank last month near the North Korean border. Speculation is mounting that Pyongyang may be behind the blast.
Yesterday, Seoul prosecutors arrested two North Korean army majors for entering South Korea by posing as ordinary defectors with an alleged mission to kill Mr Hwang (87), according to Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.
The men, both 36, told investigators that their military boss ordered them to report about Mr Hwang's activities in South Korea and be ready to "slit the betrayer's throat," a senior district prosecutor said.
The men, named as Kim Myong Ho and Dong Myong Kwan, entered South Korea in January and February via Thailand.
The plot was revealed while they underwent an intense investigation on their motive for defecting, the prosecutor said. The duo allegedly violated the National Security Law, which carries a maximum sentence of death upon conviction, he said.
A spokesman at the National Intelligence Service confirmed the arrest of the men but didn't provide additional details. He spoke on condition of anonymity, citing an office policy.
It is the first time North Korean agents have been arrested for an assassination plot against Mr Hwang, the prosecutor said.
In 1997, a nephew of one of Kim's former wives - Lee Han-young - was shot in 1997 in front of a Seoul apartment 15 years after defecting to the South. Officials never caught the assailants, but said they believe North Korean agents were responsible.
Mr Hwang, who returned to Seoul earlier this week after a rare trip to the US, wasn't surprised at the news of the plot, Yonhap news agency reported today, citing an acquaintance of Mr Hwang's.
AP