US soldier Travis King who fled to North Korea returns to US
The US soldier who illegally crossed the heavily armed border into North Korea from South Korea has returned home.
Private Travis King crossed the border into the North while on a tour of the demilitarised zone (DMZ) that separates the secretive state from the South in July.
Following his return, he was taken to a Texas army base for medical checks and interviews, the Pentagon said.
Sweden, an ally of the US, and China, a rival to the superpower, organised his return, the White House confirmed.
North Korea had said on Wednesday it would deport the serviceman.
Officials said the 23-year-old is in good health and the immediate focus will be on caring for him and reintegrating him into US society.
King returning to America
However, they added that his troubles are likely far from over.
Private King could face disciplinary proceedings such as military jail or being dishonourably discharged due to his crossing.
He had been expecting to face disciplinary action over a confrontation with local police that landed him in Korean custody for a month and a half, according to a South Korean government official.
But instead of getting on a plane at Incheon, near Seoul, to fly to Texas, Pte King apparently slipped away and joined the private tour group at the DMZ – before crossing the border without permission.
He was declared absent without leave from the army (AWOL) but not considered a deserter.
The 23-year-old was being held in North Korea after crossing over the country’s border
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The North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) had questioned King and said he confessed to illegally entering the North because he harboured “ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination” within the US Army.
He was also “disillusioned about the unequal US society”, KCNA added.
King became the first American to be detained in North Korea for almost five years.
Several US soldiers stationed in South Korea have attempted to desert or defect to North Korea, but King’s expulsion came relatively quickly compared to others who spent years there before being released from the reclusive state.
In an interview last month with The Associated Press, Mr King’s mother, Claudine Gates, said her son had “so many reasons” to want to come home.
“I just can’t see him ever wanting to just stay in Korea when he has family in America. He has so many reasons to come home,” she said.
In July, King’s sister said he was “not the type to get into trouble“.
Jaqueda Gates told NBC News: “This is crazy. I was just talking to him, literally 48 hours ago (before the DMZ incident).
“My brother, he’s not the type to get into trouble like that. It all just sounds made up.”
A federal court has paused aspects of a plan by Donald Trump to dismantle the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and put roughly 2,700 of its staff on leave.
District judge Carl Nichols, who was nominated by the US president during his first term, agreed with legal arguments from the largest government workers’ union and an association of foreign service workers.
They sued to stop Mr Trump’s administration attempting to close USAID, which distributes billions of dollars of humanitarian aid around the world.
Justice department official Brett Shumate told Judge Nichols that about 2,200 USAID employees would be put on paid leave under the administration’s plans.
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“The president has decided there is corruption and fraud at USAID,” said Mr Shumate.
It echoes comments President Trump made on Friday in a post on Truth Social accusing USAID – without evidence – of corruption and spending money fraudulently.
But Karla Gilbride, a lawyer for the unions, argued the plans were unlawful: “The major reduction in force, as well as the closure of offices, the forced relocation of these individuals were all done in excess of the executive’s authority in violation of the separation of powers.”
Judge Nichols’s order, which is in effect until 14 February, blocks Mr Trump’s administration from implementing plans to place the 2,200 USAID workers on paid leave from Saturday.
It also reinstates some 500 employees who had already been furloughed.
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And there will be a ban on relocating USAID humanitarian workers stationed outside the US, after overseas staff were ordered to return home within 30 days.
Judge Nichols will consider a request for a longer-term pause at a hearing scheduled for next week.
But he rejected other requests from the unions to reopen USAID buildings and restore funding for agency grants and contracts.
Soon after being inaugurated, Mr Trump ordered all US foreign aid be paused to ensure it is aligned with his “America First” policy.
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The dismantling of USAID has largely been overseen by Elon Musk, who is spearheading the president’s effort to cut costs and bureaucracy.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio insists the government will continue providing foreign aid, “but it is going to be foreign aid that makes sense and is aligned with our national interest”.
Friday’s ruling is the latest setback in the courts for the Trump administration.
Judges have temporarily paused other controversial policies, including one offering financial incentives for federal workers to resign and another ending American citizenship for anyone born in the US if their parents are in the country illegally.
A small plane which crashed in western Alaska with 10 people on board has been found and the US Coast Guard (USCG) says there were no survivors.
The Bering Air flight left Unalakleet at 2.38pm on Thursday but contact was lost less than an hour later, the firm’s operations director David Olson said.
On Saturday, in a post on X, the coastguard said: “USCG has ended its search for the missing plane after the aircraft was located approx 34 miles southeast of Nome. 3 individuals were found inside and reported to be deceased.
“The remaining 7 people are believed to be inside the aircraft but are currently inaccessible due to the condition of the plane. Our heartfelt condolences are with those affected by this tragic incident.”
The Cessna 208B Grand Caravan – carrying a pilot and nine adult passengers – was flying across Norton Sound when tracking site Flightradar24 reported it at 5,300ft before contact was lost.
It was travelling from Unalakleet, a community of about 690 people in western Alaska, to Nome, a gold rush town just south of the Arctic Circle.
The flight time is normally just under an hour.
Mike Salerno, a spokesperson for the US Coast Guard, said rescuers were searching the aircraft’s last known location by helicopter when they spotted the wreckage. They lowered two rescue swimmers to investigate.
The plane was heading to Nome, just south of the Arctic Circle. Pic: AP
In a post on Facebook, Nome’s fire department issued an update: “The Nome Search and Rescue Team is spooling up with assistance from the Alaska Air National Guard with recovery efforts.
“From reports we have received, the crash was not survivable. Our thoughts are with the families at this time.”
On Friday, Lieutenant Benjamin McIntyre-Coble, from the Alaskan coastguard, explained that the plane suffered a rapid loss of altitude and speed, according to radar data, but did not expand on the potential cause.
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Weather in Unalakleet at take-off time was -8.3C (17F) with fog and light snow, according to the US National Weather Service.
Bering Air serves 32 villages in western Alaska and air travel is often the only option of travelling long distances in rural parts of the US state, especially in winter.
It comes soon after two major air accidents in the US in recent weeks.
Sixty-seven people were killed when a jet and helicopter collided in Washington DC and seven died when a medical plane crashed in Philadelphia.
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