A map of North Korea (Produced by ASIAPRESS) Bocheon County is located north of Hyesan City.
◆ Rumors of Quarantined Official Shot During Failed Escape
Though unrelated to smuggling, there are widespread rumors of executions in other cities.
A trade official who was placed in quarantine in Rason, North Hamkyung Province, after displaying cold-like symptoms following contact with a Chinese trader, was supposedly shot dead during his attempted escape from an isolation ward.
A reporting partner from Hoeryong City heard this news on February 7 from foreign currency exchange dealers visiting from nearby Rason City. Since then, related rumors have spread throughout N. Korea- with even South Korean media reporting on possible outbreaks.
As of February 16, the authenticity of separate reports on the various executions rumored to have taken place along the border is unknown. Reporting partners in Pyongyang, North Pyongan Province, Ryanggang Province, and North Hamkyung Province are all investigating the situations of local hospitals but, as yet, there have been no signs of further infection. Despite this, rumors of an outbreak continue to spread. (Kang Ji-won)
※ ASIAPRESS contacts reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.
- ＜Breaking News From N. Korea＞ Tension Mounts as Regime Regulates Markets, Confiscates Stocks, and Slanders Price Gouging Shopkeepers (2020-02-14 10:46:16)
- ＜Breaking News From N. Korea＞ Rumors of Outbreak Spread: Was a Trade Official Executed for Trying to Escape Quarantine? (2020-02-13 16:22:29)
- ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Regime Regulates Rice Prices as Pyongyang Residents Fear Inflation Rather Than Coronavirus (2020-02-12 10:42:56)
- ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Won Plunges After Regime Attempts to Confiscate Foreign Cash off Merchants and Force Companies to Trade in Local Currency (2020-02-12 10:37:22)
- ＜Breaking News From Inside N. Korea＞ Residents Begin to Panic as Border Shutdown Blocks Chinese Imports and Induces Inflation (2020-02-03 18:44:21)
Editor’s notes on North Korean reporters
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