According to South Korean news sources, a North Korean official stated: “Those responsible for the unacceptable casualties will face strict punishment.” The official added that 20 to 30 key party members in the flood-affected region were executed late last month. The situation involving the dismissed Chagang Province Party Secretary Kang Bong-hoon is also being reviewed.
North Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim Jong-un has ordered authorities to “strictly punish” those who were deemed to have “neglected” their disaster prevention duties.
The heavy rains that struck North Korea in July led to landslides and flooding, impacting over 4,000 homes and isolating 5,000 residents. Kim Jong-un personally inspected the affected areas, and 15,400 people, including mothers, children, elderly, and disabled soldiers, were accommodated in Pyongyang facilities.
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Kim Jong-un has stated that it will take between two and three months to rebuild the flood-affected areas and has designated parts of three provinces as “special disaster emergency zones.”
North Korea has experienced frequent flooding, exacerbated by extensive deforestation. The dictator has criticized reports suggesting human losses might exceed 1,000 or 1,500, dismissing them as false rumors propagated by South Korea to damage North Korea’s reputation.
In an effort to boost tourism and the economy, North Korea plans to reopen to international visitors for the first time since the pandemic. However, potential travelers may face less appealing destinations such as potato farms or lubricant factories, despite the regime’s efforts to attract visitors to the remote city of Samjiyon and potentially Pyongyang.
Kim Jong-un is also pushing forward with a project to convert an abandoned hotel into a Vegas-style casino, seeking foreign investment to complete the “Hotel of Doom” project. The 105-floor Ryugyong Hotel, currently the tallest building in North Korea, is being offered to investors for the casino project. North Korea already has two casinos: one in Pyongyang and another in the Rason Special Economic Zone.
(Includes inputs from online sources)
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