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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may have executed officials after floods resulted in the deaths in the “hermit kingdom” earlier this year, local media in South Korean reported.
South Korean spy agency, the National Intelligence Service, said that it closely monitoring the situation after detecting signs of the executions, Yonhap reported.
Kim during an emergency party politburo meeting held in late July, said he will punish officials for the damage from heavy rains that flooded areas and displaced thousands.
The South Korean news outlet cited North Korean state media KCNA to state that several officials were dismissed from their posts over the flood damage.
Among those dismissed included the public security minister and chiefs of the ruling party’s provincial committees.
Kim visited flood-hit areas in Sinuiju and Uiju County in July and guided an operation to rescue around 5,000 isolated residents with the military’s helicopters.
A Yonhap article quoted South Korea’s unification ministry in July stating that the North appears to have sustained “considerable” damage, citing the North’s media report on the need to restore electricity and communication lines, as well as supply medicine.
North Korea state media had published several photos of Kim inspecting the flood damage in Sinuiju on a lifeboat. The village he toured looked severely flooded, with almost all buildings submerged up to their roofs, reported media in Seoul.
