US student arrested for committing ‘hostile act’ in North Korea

A US student was accused of committing a “hostile act “ against the state.

The KCNA state news agency said the US government had “tolerated and manipulated” the student, who attends the University of Virginia.

However, thorough details are not given by KCNA, but said that the student was now being probed.

An official at the US embassy in the South Korean capital, Seoul, told Reuters news agency that it was aware of the arrest.

The student is the third Western citizen known to be held in North Korea.

Hyeon Soo Lim, a Canadian pastor of South Korean origin, was sentenced to life imprisonment in December for an alleged plot to overthrow the government.

A Korean-American is also thought to be in North Korean detention on charges of spying.

 Later State news agency KCNA identified him as University of Virginia student Otto Frederick Warmbier.

He had entered North Korea as a tourist with the intention “to destroy the country’s unity”, said KCNA, which added that the US government had “tolerated and manipulated” him.

The latest incident comes amid escalating tensions, after the North said it had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb. The claim has not yet been confirmed.