US soldier Travis King who fled to North Korea returns to US

Published

1 year ago

September 28, 2023

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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.

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 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.”

World

More than a dozen people missing after tourist boat sinks off coast of Egypt

Published

3 hours ago

November 25, 2024

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More than a dozen people missing after tourist boat sinks off coast of Egypt

More than a dozen people are missing after a tourist boat sank in the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt, officials have said.

The boat, Sea Story, was carrying 45 people, including 31 tourists of varying nationalities and 14 crew.

Authorities are searching for 17 people who are still missing, the governor of the Red Sea region said on Monday, adding that 28 people had been rescued.

The vessel was part of a diving trip when it went down near the coastal town of Marsa Alam.

Officials said a distress call was received at 5.30am local time on Monday.

The boat had departed from Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam on Sunday and was scheduled to reach its destination of Hurghada Marina on 29 November.

Some survivors had been airlifted to safety on a helicopter, officials said.

It was not immediately clear what caused the four-deck, wooden-hulled motor yacht to sink.

The firm that operates the yacht, Dive Pro Liveaboard in Hurghada, said it has no information on the matter.

According to its maker’s website, the Sea Story was built in 2022.

The incident comes after the Egyptian Meteorological Authority issued a warning on Saturday about turbulence and high waves on the Red Sea.

The organisation had advised against maritime activity for Sunday and Monday.

Some tourist companies have stopped or limited operations on the Red Sea due to the potential dangers from conflicts in the region.

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv – as commander ‘sacked for lying about war progress’

Published

15 hours ago

November 25, 2024

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv - as commander 'sacked for lying about war progress'

Russia launched a large drone attack on Kyiv overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning the attack shows his capital needs better air defences.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 50 of 73 Russian drones launched, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries as a result of the attacks.

Russia has used more than 800 guided aerial bombs and around 460 attack drones in the past week.

Warning that Ukraine needs to improve its air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “An air alert has been sounded almost daily across Ukraine this week”.

“Ukraine is not a testing ground for weapons. Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state.

“But Russia still continues its efforts to kill our people, spread fear and panic, and weaken us.”

Russia did not comment on the attack.

It comes as Russian media reported that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the country’s southern military district, had been removed from his role over allegedly providing misleading reports about his troops’ progress.

While Russian forces have advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the invasion, forces have been much slower around Siversk and the eastern region of Donetsk.

Russian war bloggers have long complained that units there are poorly supported and thrown into deadly battles for little tactical gain.

Russia’s ministry of defence has not commented on the reports.

World

Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports

Published

17 hours ago

November 24, 2024

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Russian forces capture 'former British soldier' fighting for Ukraine - reports

Russian forces have reportedly captured a British man while he was fighting for Ukraine.

In a widely circulated video posted on Sunday, the man says his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson, aged 22.

He says he is a former British Army soldier who signed up to fight for Ukraine’s International Legion after his job.

He is dressed in army fatigues and speaks with an English accent as he says to camera: “I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment.”

He tells the camera he was “just a private”, “a signalman” in “One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron”.

“When I left… got fired from my job, I applied on the International Legion webpage. I had just lost everything. I just lost my job,” he said.

“My dad was away in prison, I see it on the TV,” he added, shaking his head. “It was a stupid idea.”

In a second video, he is shown with his hands tied and at one point, with tape over his eyes.

He describes how he had travelled to Ukraine from Britain, saying: “I flew to Krakow, Poland, from London Luton. Bus from there to Medyka in Poland, on the Ukraine border.”

Russian state news agency Tass reported that a military source said a “UK mercenary” had been “taken prisoner in the Kursk area” of Russia.

The UK Foreign Office said it was “supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention”.

The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment at this stage.