North Korea executes around 30 govt officials after deadly floods and landslides: Report
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may have ordered around 30 government officials to be executed for failing to prevent the deaths of over a thousand people in recent flooding, the South Korean media reported.
The heavy rain and landslides that struck Chagang Province caused numerous deaths, injuries, and left many homeless.
North Korean Authorities vowed to take severe action against those who, it is alleged, could have done more to prevent the casualties, Chosun TV reported.
Chosun TV citing a North Korean official reported that those responsible for the unacceptable loss of life will face strict punishment. The report also mentioned that 20 to 30 officials from the flood-affected area were executed simultaneously late last month.
HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the claim.
Due to North Korea’s extreme secrecy, details are hard to confirm, but the North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim Jong Un ordered authorities to “strictly punish” officials following the devastating floods that struck Chagang Province, near the border with China, in July.
In an emergency Politiburo meeting presided in Sinuiju, leader Kim Jong Un asked authorities to “strictly punish” those who he said neglected their responsibilities for disaster prevention and caused “even the casualty that can not be allowed,” according to KCNA.
Investigations into the actions of the dismissed Chagang Province Party secretary Kang Bong-hoon are ongoing. Kang, who also served as a former deputy director of the Munitions Industry Department, was known to have accompanied Kim Jong-un during on-site inspections, the report claimed.
The northwestern province was hit by severe floods in July, leaving thousands of residents homeless and resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
South Korean media suggested that the death toll from the floods could exceed 1,000. North Korean state media reported that the heavy rain flooded 4,100 houses, 7,410 acres of agricultural land, and many public buildings, structures, roads, and railways in the northwestern city of Sinuiju and the neighboring town of Uiju.