North Korea: Envoy Attack 'Just Punishment'

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By Sky News US Team

North Korea has called a knife attack on the American ambassador in Seoul "just punishment" for the US decision to push ahead with joint military exercises with South Korea.

Mark Lippert was slashed on the face and wrist by a knife-wielding attacker shouting for unification of the divided peninsula.

The 42-year-old was taken to hospital after the attack during a breakfast speech in Seoul, and underwent surgery for more than two hours. His injuries were not life-threatening.

Mr Lippert needed 80 stitches for an 11cm (4in) gash to the right of his face and a cut to his left arm which ruptured a tendon and caused nerve damage.

Secretary of State John Kerry said the US would not be intimidated by the attack and vowed that anyone who threatens or harms American diplomats would be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

Earlier, the official North Korean KCNA news agency had described the attack as "just punishment for US warmongers" and called it a valid "expression of resistance".

Footage taken after the attack showed Mr Lippert being rushed out of the building holding one hand to his bleeding right cheek, with his other hand smeared with blood.

Security staff and police officers were seen jumping on the ambassador's assailant, who was armed with a 10-inch blade.

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Gallery: US Envoy Injured In Knife Attack

US Ambassador Mark Lippert was slashed on the face and wrist by a knife-wielding attacker

The suspect, identified as im Ki-Jong, screamed demands for a unified North and South Korea

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The attack took place during a breakfast speech in Seoul

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Police patrol the US Embassy after the attack

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Several hours after the attack, Mr Lippert tweeted that he was "doing well&in great spirits" and would be back "ASAP" to advance the US-South Korean alliance.

Doctors said he would probably be in hospital for up to four days and may experience sensory problems in his left hand for several months.

President Barack Obama called Mr Lippert, a former aide, to wish him a swift recovery, while a US State Department spokeswoman said: "We strongly condemn this act of violence."

Police have identified the suspected attacker as 55-year-old Kim Ki-Jong, who was protesting against the US-South Korean military drills that he claims ruined efforts for reconciliation between the two Koreas.

"I carried out an act of terror," he shouted as he was pinned to the floor before being arrested.

Sky News producer Jen Kwon in Beijing said: "Kim Ki-Jong seems to think that he is a patriot. He had visited North Korea eight times during 2006 and 2007, tried to set himself of fire on 2007 in front of the South Korean president's residence, and had attacked the Japanese ambassador in 2010.

"South Korean politicians are worried that this might affect relations with the US. Soon after the incident, the South Korean president, lawmakers, left-wing and right-wing NGOs all condemned the attack."

South and North Korea have been divided since the 1950-53 Korean War and are still technically at war because the fighting ended in a truce.

The US and South Korea launched annual joint military exercises on Monday, leading to heightened tensions with the communist North.

Pyongyang claims they are rehearsals for an invasion, while South Korea and the US argue they are purely defensive. America has almost 30,000 troops permanently stationed in the South.

Following the attack on the ambassador, a South Korean defence ministry spokesman said the exercises would continue as planned.

Mr Lippert, a long-time adviser to Mr Obama and a former US assistant secretary of defence for Asian affairs, only took up his post in South Korea last October.

His wife recently gave birth to their son, to whom they gave a Korean middle name.

Mr Lippert has previously served as an intelligence officer for naval special operations, and won a Bronze Star Medal following a tour in Iraq.

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