North Korea to put US citizen on trial
Activist suspects that tour operator is facing charges for taking photos of starving children
North Korea says it will put a US citizen on trial for trying to overthrow the communist regime, in the face of soaring tension between Pyongyang and the West.
The North's official Korean Central News Agency said that Pae Jun-ho had admitted charges and would soon face judgment.
The announcement follows a months-long standoff on the Korean peninsula stoked by the North's nuclear test in February, which prompted the UN Security Council to impose fresh sanctions on the isolated nation.
Pae, who is believed to be a Korean-American tour operator, was arrested in November as he entered the northeastern port city of Rason. The news agency said a preliminary inquiry had been completed.
Seoul-based activist Do Hee-yoon suspected Pae was arrested because he took photographs of emaciated children in North Korea as part of efforts to appeal for more outside aid for them.
The North's announcement came hours before US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se for talks in Seoul. Burns did not publicly comment on the trial.