North Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has died at the age of 69, the country’s state-run TV officially announced Monday.

Kim died on a train at 8.30 a.m. on Saturday while taking part in a visit to an area outside the country’s capital city, the announcement reported.

A statement was read out by an emotional news announcer, who was wearing black, on North Korea’s national television service. The announcer explained that the dictator died on Saturday of physical and mental “overwork.” However, a later report released by KCNA has claimed that Kim died of a heart attack. more >>

North Korea has threatened “unexpected consequences” for South Korea if it does not stop plans for the construction of giant lighted Christmas trees near the two countries' contentious border.

Seoul granted permission to a church group to erect a 100-foot-tall, tree-shaped structure on the top of Aegibong Hill – two miles from the North Korean border. When illuminated by hundreds of tiny light bulbs, the structure is said to be easily visible from the North Korean city of Kaesong.

South Korea said it would consider allowing more groups to build structures along the border. more >>

Imagine looking up into the sky on Christmas Eve and seeing huge balloons floating down carrying hundreds of packages of Peeps. The people of North Korea will experience just that this Christmas due to a new initiative from Seoul USA.

The Colorado Springs-based organization has offices in South Korea where it plans balloon launches to its northern neighbor throughout the year. The 40-foot weather balloons usually carry goods like religious materials, Bibles, practical necessities and news from the outside world.

But this Christmas Eve, the organization decided to launch a very different payload into the world's most closed country. The popular marshmallow stars, Christmas trees, and reindeer will infiltrate North Korea through balloons launched from secret locations on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone. more >>

A coalition of human rights groups will deliver a letter to Kim Jong Il asking access into North Korea Thursday, on what is deemed a “Global Day of Action.”

The letter, signed by Christian Solidarity Worldwide, the International Federation of Human Rights and 38 other members of the International Coalition to Stop Crimes against Humanity, will be delivered to North Korea’s embassies and diplomatic missions in cities including London, Paris, Geneva, New York, Bangkok and Tokyo, as well as the de facto North Korean embassy, The Chosen Soren, in Tokyo. The letter will be written in several languages including English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and French.

The letter to the North Korean leader comes nearly a month after the coalition launched a major campaign in Tokyo pushing for the establishment of a United Nations Commission of Inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity in the country. more >>

A major global campaign was launched in Tokyo today by human rights groups across the world to push for the establishment of a United Nations Commission of Inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity in North Korea.

Major human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Federation for Human Rights have all united to advocate for investigations that would highlight and detail North Korea’s human rights record.

Two Christian groups, Christian Solidarity Worldwide and the Inter-American Federation of Christian Lawyers, have also joined the ranks of the over 40 organizations coming from North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America to advocate for the world to recognize and place a priority on the human rights atrocities that characterize the Kim Jong-il leadership and governance of North Korea today. more >>

North Korea has released a Californian businessman who had been imprisoned since November 2010 under charges of proselytizing.

Official reports from the Korean Central News Agency has said that Jun Young-su, 60, of Orange County, Ca. was released on humanitarian grounds. The reports stated: “The investigation proved that Jun committed a serious crime … which he frankly admitted himself.”

Pyongyang did not report under precisely what charges it was holding Jun under, however it is understood that he was accused of attempting to spread Christianity in North Korea. more >>