N. Korea upset over delay in returning Jong-nam's body

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR

North Korea has criticized the Malaysian government over the delay in returning the body of Kim Jong-nam, the murdered half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korean Ambassador to Malaysia, Kang Chol said Friday that Malaysia was delaying the return of Jong-nam's body, who was allegedly poisoned to death in Kuala Lumpur International Airport last Monday.

Malaysia has also violated human rights by conducting a post-mortem Thursday on Jong-nam without the consent of North Korea, Chol told reporters gathered outside Kuala Lumpur General Hospital, where Jong-nam's body is being kept.

"We did not approve the post-mortem. This is the culmination of the violation of the human rights and infringing upon our citizen, disregarding the elementary international laws and the consular laws," he said.

The ambassador said North Korea would also reject the outcome of the post-mortem, as it was not approved by the country.

Chol said the Malaysian government was delaying the handing-over process even after the autopsy.

Chol , also attacked South Korea, claiming it was behind the delay.

"The South Korean puppet authorities [...] are distorting the public opinion, resorting to the tricky plots to defame the image of North Korea with this incident," he said.

Kim Jong-nam, 46, died in Malaysia on Monday. He was allegedly assaulted by two women while at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport while waiting to fly to Macau to meet his family.

The Malaysian authorities are still investigating the case.