‘Worst-ever hostile act’: North Korea says US sanctions on leader Kim ‘a declaration of war’

North Korea said on Friday that the new US sanctions targeting its leader Kim Jong-un amounted to a “declaration of a war” and vowed to take strong retaliatory measures.

The move by the United States constituted “the worst-ever hostile act” and “an open declaration of a war” against the North, Pyongyang’s foreign ministry said in a statement, carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

The US on Wednesday placed Kim on its sanctions blacklist, calling him directly responsible for a long list of serious human rights abuses.

The sanctions are the first that name the country’s “Supreme Leader”, as well as the first targeting the reclusive state for rights violations.

Pyongyang, in its first response to the sanctions, urged Washington to withdraw them immediately, warning that the North would instantly cut off all diplomatic channels if they failed to do so.

“The United States has dared to challenge the highest authority of ours, committing the worst-ever hostile act that goes beyond confrontation over the so-called human rights issue. This constitutes an open declaration of a war,” the statement said.