Assassination of Kim Han Sol, Son of Kim Jong Nam: Plot Foiled

According to Korea Joongang Daily (JoongAng Ilbo), China has arrested would-be assassins of Kim Han Sol, the 22 year old son of recently assassinated Kim Jong Nam. Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, was assassinated on February 13, 2017 in the Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Airport through the use of a VX nerve agent, considered to be a weapon of mass destruction. Kim Han Sol is the nephew of Kim Jong Un.

For current updates on the assassination trial of Kim Jong Nam, see

Assassination of Kim Jong Nam Trial: What We Know So Far

According to the the South Korean daily, seven North Korean spies were secretly dispatched to China on a mission to kill Kim Han Sol. Chinese authorities have two of these spies in custody and is questioning them in Beijing. The anonymous source said that North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau recently sent the team to Beijing — apparently without China’s knowledge — to search for the 22-year-old nephew of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and kill him. Officials from China’s Ministry of State Security apprehended two of the spies, but the whereabouts of the other five suspects are not currently known.

Kim Han Sol is the son of Ri Hye Kyong and the now deceased Kim Jong Nam. They also have a younger daughter. The family had been living in Macau until the assassination of Kim Jong Nam, when the family went into hiding.

Kim Han Sol made a statement in March 2017 in a YouTube Video uploaded by a group named Cheollima Civil Defense.

In a statement on the Cheollima Civil Defense website the organization said the following:

“Cheollima Civil Defense responded last month to an emergency request by survivors of the family of Kim Jong Nam for extraction and protection. The three family members were met quickly and relocated to safety. We have in the past addressed other urgent needs for protection. This will be the first and last statement on this particular matter, and the present whereabouts of this family will not be addressed.

We publicly express our gratitude for the emergency humanitarian assistance afforded to us in protecting this family by the governments of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the People’s Republic of China, the United States of America, and a fourth government to remain unnamed. We also recognize our colleagues who remain in the North or within its system who provide critical assistance in extracting such individuals.

In particular, we recognize Ambassador A.J.A. Embrechts, representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, for his timely and strong response to our sudden request for assistance. Ambassador Embrechts is a credit to the people of the Netherlands and their long and principled stance for human rights and humanitarian norms.

We regret that several nations refused assistance to this family in this particular apolitical, humanitarian emergency. We, and those we aid, recognize with gratitude all who stand with us on the right side of history.”

천리마민방위 | Cheollima Civil Defense

www.cheollimacivildefense.org