North Korea Detains Two Americans Employed At A Pyongyang University
- 7 years ago
North Korea has detained two Americans employed at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology.
North Korea has detained two Americans employed at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, reports NBC News.
According to the media outlet, state-run Korean Central News Agency announced on Saturday that Kim Hak-song, the manager of a university-run farm, was taken into custody.
He has reportedly been accused of targeting North Korea with "hostile acts.” Fellow university worker Kim Sang-duk was arrested on similar charges last month, notes CNN.
Notably, the school was established by evangelical Christians, but, in compliance with North Korean law, does not generally engage in proselytization.
The university was founded in 2010 and holds a very unique place in the nation. CNN describes it as, “one of the few schools to employ foreign experts in North Korea.”
NBC News notes its students are, “are hand-picked by the regime in Pyongyang to receive a Western-style education…they pay no tuition and classes are taught in English by a faculty that is predominantly Christian. The staples of North Korean traditions remain: patriotic songs, marching drills, praise for leaders.”
Stephan Haggard, professor of Korea studies at the University of California San Diego, proposes that the recent arrests by North Korea “really suggests there may be a hostage-taking motive here. It’s classic asymmetric warfare. You’re putting pressure on us, moving the Carl Vinson around, so we’re nabbing your citizens.”
North Korea has detained two Americans employed at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, reports NBC News.
According to the media outlet, state-run Korean Central News Agency announced on Saturday that Kim Hak-song, the manager of a university-run farm, was taken into custody.
He has reportedly been accused of targeting North Korea with "hostile acts.” Fellow university worker Kim Sang-duk was arrested on similar charges last month, notes CNN.
Notably, the school was established by evangelical Christians, but, in compliance with North Korean law, does not generally engage in proselytization.
The university was founded in 2010 and holds a very unique place in the nation. CNN describes it as, “one of the few schools to employ foreign experts in North Korea.”
NBC News notes its students are, “are hand-picked by the regime in Pyongyang to receive a Western-style education…they pay no tuition and classes are taught in English by a faculty that is predominantly Christian. The staples of North Korean traditions remain: patriotic songs, marching drills, praise for leaders.”
Stephan Haggard, professor of Korea studies at the University of California San Diego, proposes that the recent arrests by North Korea “really suggests there may be a hostage-taking motive here. It’s classic asymmetric warfare. You’re putting pressure on us, moving the Carl Vinson around, so we’re nabbing your citizens.”