North Korea's Kim Jong Un Wants the Former President of South Korea Dead

RTS15ABF
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the defense detachment on Jangjae Islet and the Hero Defence Detachment on Mu Islet located in the southernmost part of the waters off the southwest front in this... KCNA/Reuters

North Korea, which is ruled by a man so afraid of getting beheaded that he only travels at night, called Wednesday for the execution of the former leader of rival South Korea.

The isolated dictatorship wants to execute former South Korean President Park Geun-hye and an aide after claiming a "revelation showed" the ousted leader approved a plan to assassinate "supreme leadership" two years ago, Reuters reported. The announcement was made via KCNA, Pyongyang's state-run news service.

Related: North Korea: Will Donald Trump punish China over nuclear threat failures?

"Former President Park Geun-hye and former former spy chief Lee Byung-ho, as well as agents of the National Intelligence Service cannot avoid being cruelly killed by anyone, any time and any means from now on," the ministry of state security and other officials wrote in a statement shared by South Korean news agency Yonhap. They added: "Our supreme leader is a symbol of the dignity and loyalty of our Republic and the whole life and destiny of our army and people."

Park was removed from office this past March after being impeached amid allegations of extortion, bribery and abuse of power stemming from a collaboration with a friend who used Park's connections to receive millions of dollars. Park went to jail in Seoul but recently appeared at the start of her trial, CNN reported.

Reuters linked Wednesday's announcement from North Korea to a Monday report from Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun claiming Park in 2015 signed off on a paper that approved the idea of a "leadership change"—whether that be exile, assassination, revolution or retirement—in Pyongyang. The story cited anonymous sources, but it's no secret that Park is not a fan of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un: Last September, she called him reckless and obsessed with nuclear weapons.

"Kim Jong Un does not listen to any voice, and this leads us to view Kim Jong Un's mental state as uncontrollable," Park said at the time.

Kim's decision to broadcast the desired death penalty for Park and her associates is similarly unsurprising. The dictator has executed more than 300 people in the past six years, including his uncle, according to The New York Times.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Julia Glum joined IBT Media in October 2014 as a breaking news reporter specializing in youth affairs.

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go
Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go