|
|
|
S. Korea questions N.K. explanation of shooting death
By Kim Young-gyo
SEOUL, July 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea questioned Sunday North Korea's explanation of the mysterious killing of a South Korean female tourist in the communist country this week.
"From a common sense point of view, the explanation given by the North to Hyundai Asan is not sufficiently convincing," said Kim Ho-nyeon, a spokesman for the Unification Ministry.
The 53-year-old tourist, Park Wang-ja, was shot to death early Friday by a North Korean soldier during her visit to Mount Geumgang resort on the east coast of North Korea. She was said to be taking a pre-dawn stroll on a beach near the resort before she was shot.
North Korea claimed that the woman crossed deep into a fenced-off military area, but fled toward her hotel when the soldier ordered her to halt. She died at 4:50 a.m. at a spot located 200 meters from the fence, according to the North.
The Unification Ministry spokesman said closed circuit television (CCTV) footage from the hotel where Park was staying showed she went outside at 4:30 a.m.
He said the hotel was 706 meters from the beach, while the distance between the entrance to the beach and the fense was 428 meters. The distance from the fence to the so-called "Kisaeng Rocks," an area where a North Korean soldier claimed to have first detected her, is 1,200 meters, he added.
"Mrs. Park must have covered 3,334 meters at most or 3,000 meters at least, according to the North's claim," said Kim. "It is very doubtful that such a woman in her 50's had covered about 3 kilometers in just 20 minutes. In addition, the area was entirely sand."
ygkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
|
| |
|
|
Home
