DPRK emigration data
Monday, March 1st, 2010Josh points out this table from the UNHCR (originally published by RFA):
Click image for larger version.
Archive for the ‘Yemen’ Category
DPRK ships (2)* Vs. Somali Pirates (1)
Monday, January 25th, 2010(* = assist from the US Navy)
DPRK sailors (or DPRK flagged ships) have come under attack from Somali pirates three times since October 2007.
In the first attack, the DPRK ship overcame the pirates with the assistance of the US Navy. More here.
In November 2009, a North Korean crew was taken hostage by Somali pirates. I still don’t know what happened to them, but I hope they were released safely. More here.
This week Josh points out an AP story about a third attackon a Yemeni-owned, DPRK-flagged vessel:
The U.S. Navy says it overtook a suspected Somali pirate skiff that tried to attack a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden.
A Navy statement issued Sunday says a security team aboard the merchant vessel Napht Al Yemen 1 repelled the Jan. 20 pirate attack without U.S. help.
The USS Porter stopped and boarded the pirate skiff later that day.
The commercial ship is Yemeni owned but sails under a North Korean flag.
The incident marked a rare example of the U.S. military aiding North Korea, a reclusive rogue nation.
Piracy is among the fastest ways to make money in Somalia, a nation plagued by war and no functioning government.
Somali pirates seized 47 vessels last year. They currently hold about 200 crew members hostage.
US berates N Korea over Scud exports
Wednesday, December 11th, 2002BBC
12/11/2002
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has condemned North Korea over its apparent attempt to deliver a shipment of Scud missiles to Yemen.
Acting on American intelligence, the Spanish Navy intercepted and boarded the freighter So San in the Arabian Sea on Monday.
US naval forces then conducted a search of the vessel and discovered 15 Scud missiles and warheads hidden under a cargo of cement, along with a quantity of chemicals.
Yemen has now confirmed that it ordered the missiles, and has protested to the US and Spain over the ships’s seizure.
While the Yemeni Government is not regarded as an enemy by the US, there are fears that such military hardware could fall into the hands of radical Islamic groups operating in the country.
Mr Rumsfeld said: “North Korea doesn’t like to hear me say it, but they continue to be the largest proliferator of missiles and ballistic missile technology on the face of the Earth.
“They are putting in the hands of many countries technology and capabilities which have the potential for destroying hundreds of thousands of people.”
Legal questions
Mr Rumsfeld declined to comment on whether the missile shipment constituted a violation of international law, but said there were legal issues surrounding efforts to conceal the weapons.
Questions about the legality of the seizure have already been raised.
US naval forces have taken charge of the ship and are escorting it to Diego Garcia island.
The current US administration has branded North Korea part of an “axis of evil”, along with Iraq and Iran.