Armed guards at Kim morgue, Malaysia says body still not claimed

Armed men stood guard yesterday at the morgue holding the body of the assassinated half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Un, with officials denying reports the dead man’s son had arrived to claim the remains, reports AFP.The corpse of Kim Jong-Nam—who was killed last Monday at Kuala Lumpur airport—has been at the centre of a diplomatic row between Pyongyang and Malaysia, after the North insisted it be returned and objected to an autopsy being performed.
But Malaysia rejected the request, saying the remains must stay in the morgue until a family member identified them with a DNA sample.
Jong-Nam’s son Kim Han-Sol had been due to arrive in Kuala Lumpur from Macau on Monday night, local media and intelligence sources said, but AFP was not able to confirm his presence in the city.
In the early hours of Tuesday a convoy of four unmarked vehicles was seen entering the hospital compound where they dropped off dozens of Malaysian special forces.
They were later replaced by private security officers.
A white police van was seen leaving the complex at 4:00 am (2000 GMT Monday), an AFP journalist said.
No family member had yet come forward to claim the body, said Noor Hisham Abdullah, director general of health, at a press conference which otherwise offered few details about Malaysia’s investigation.
“We’re still waiting for next of kin to come to us,” he said, adding that an autopsy report was still pending more than a week after the murder. Pyongyang’s envoy to Kuala Lumpur on Monday dismissed Malaysia’s request for a DNA sample as “preposterous” and said the embassy had the right to reclaim the body of a diplomatic passport holder.
Ambassador Kang Chol also savaged the police investigation into the killing, saying it was politically motivated and that Malaysia had conspired with South Korea from the beginning to frame the North.

 

Armed guards at Kim morgue, Malaysia says body still not claimed

Armed men stood guard yesterday at the morgue holding the body of the assassinated half-brother of North Koreas leader Kim Jong-Un, with officials denying reports the dead mans son had arrived to claim the remains, reports AFP.The corpse of Kim Jong-Namwho was killed last Monday at Kuala Lumpur airporthas been at the centre of a diplomatic row between Pyongyang and Malaysia, after the North insisted it be returned and objected to an autopsy being performed. But Malaysia rejected the request, saying the remains must stay in the morgue until a family member identified them with a DNA sample. Jong-Nams son Kim Han-Sol had been due to arrive in Kuala Lumpur from Macau on Monday night, local media and intelligence sources said, but AFP was not able to confirm his presence in the city. In the early hours of Tuesday a convoy of four unmarked vehicles was seen entering the hospital compound where they dropped off dozens of Malaysian special forces. They were later replaced by private security officers. A white police van was seen leaving the complex at 4:00 am (2000 GMT Monday), an AFP journalist said. No family member had yet come forward to claim the body, said Noor Hisham Abdullah, director general of health, at a press conference which otherwise offered few details about Malaysias investigation. Were still waiting for next of kin to come to us, he said, adding that an autopsy report was still pending more than a week after the murder. Pyongyangs envoy to Kuala Lumpur on Monday dismissed Malaysias request for a DNA sample as preposterous and said the embassy had the right to reclaim the body of a diplomatic passport holder. Ambassador Kang Chol also savaged the police investigation into the killing, saying it was politically motivated and that Malaysia had conspired with South Korea from the beginning to frame the North.