Seoul: I directed The powerful sister of the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un accused Seoul of causing the spread of the “Covid” epidemic in the country, and vowed to “retaliate” with Pyongyang declaring its “victory” over the epidemic.
And North Korea has previously attributed the outbreak of Covid on its soil to “strange things” happening near the border with the South, allegations that Seoul strongly rejected.
Despite the ban, which went into effect in 2021, South Korean activists have for years been sending balloons across the border to the North carrying propaganda leaflets and US dollars, which Pyongyang has long protested against.
And the official North Korean Central News Agency reported Thursday that Yoo Jong blamed these activities at the border for the spread of the Covid epidemic in the North, considering it a “crime against humanity.”
She said that many countries and the World Health Organization recognized “the risk of spreading an infectious disease through contact with contaminated objects,” according to the agency.
“It is very worrying that South Korea is sending leaflets, money, brochures and dirty materials to our region,” she added.
Yoo Jung warned that Pyongyang was considering a “strong retaliation,” adding that if the balloons continued to be sent, “we will respond by eliminating not only the virus, but also the South Korean authorities.”
Last month, Seoul said that “there are no officially confirmed cases of infection with the Covid virus through contact with mail or materials.”
Yoo Jong’s comments come with the North Korean leader’s announcement, Wednesday, of “victory” over the “Covid” epidemic, after no new infections were recorded in the country for nearly two weeks.
Experts say that North Korea has one of the worst health care systems in the world, with its hospitals lacking equipment and limited intensive care rooms, and the country also suffers from a lack of Covid-19 vaccines.
Even Kim Jong Un apparently suffered from Covid, according to comments made by his sister.
Yoo Jung noted that Kim “was suffering from a high fever during this war-like period of sanitary isolation, but he could not lie down, even for a moment, thinking about the people responsible for him.”
(AFP)
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