This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/07/north-korea-merrill-newman-deported

The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
North Korea says US veteran Merrill Newman has been deported North Korea says US veteran Merrill Newman has been deported
(about 1 hour later)
North Korea says it has deported an elderly US tourist and war veteran who has been detained for more than a month for alleged hostile acts against the country. North Korea says it has deported an elderly US tourist who was detained for more than a month, apparently ending the saga of Merrill Newman's return to the North six decades after he advised South Korean guerrillas who are still loathed by Pyongyang.
The official Korean Central News Agency said it made the decision because 85-year-old Merrill Newman had apologised for his alleged crimes during the Korean war and because of his age and medical condition. North Korea said it was releasing 85-year-old Newman because had apologised for his alleged crimes during the Korean war and because of his age and medical condition, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency.
Newman has yet to speak publicly and it was unclear on Saturday where he had been deported to. His alleged confession was shown on state TV last month, but it was unclear whether he was under coercion. The US vice-president, Joe Biden, who is in Seoul, welcomed the release and said Newman was in Beijing. Aside from an awkwardly worded alleged confession last month, Newman has yet to speak publicly since being taken off a plane by North Korean authorities on 26 October while preparing to leave the country after a 10-day tour.
Newman was taken off a plane on 26 October by North Korean authorities while preparing to leave the country after a 10-day tour. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf urged Pyongyang to pardon "as a humanitarian gesture" another American, Kenneth Bae, who has been held in the North for more than a year.
A former group of South Korean guerrillas say Newman advised them as they fought behind enemy lines during the war. Some members have expressed surprise that Newman would take the risk of visiting North Korea given his role with their group, which is still loathed and remembered in the North. Members of a group of former South Korean guerrillas who fought behind enemy lines during the 1950-53 Korean war said in an interview last week with the Associated Press that Newman was their adviser. Some have expressed surprise that Newman would take the risk of visiting North Korea given his association with their group, which is still remembered with keen hatred in the North.
Authorities in Pyongyang claimed Newman apologised for killing North Koreans during the 1950-53 Korean war, attempting to meet surviving guerrilla fighters he had training during the conflict and reconnect them with their wartime colleagues living in South Korea, and criticising the North during his recent trip. The televised statement read by Newman said he was apologising for killing North Koreans during the war, attempting to meet surviving guerrilla fighters he had training during the conflict and reconnect them with their wartime colleagues living in South Korea, and criticising the North during his recent trip.
Newman's comments have not been independently confirmed.Newman's comments have not been independently confirmed.
Tension remains high on the Korean peninsula, though Pyongyang's rhetoric against the US and South Korea has toned down in recent weeks compared with its torrent of threats to launch nuclear wars earlier in the year. Newman's political value had "expired" for North Korea, said Chang Yong Seok, a senior researcher at Seoul National University's Institute for Peace and Unification Studies. Newman's written apology and the TV broadcast were enough for Pyongyang to show outsiders that it had maintained its dignity, Chang said.
Before Newman, North Korea had detained at least six Americans since 2009. Five have been either released or deported after prominent Americans such as former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter travelled to Pyongyang. Chang said detaining Newman also hurt Pyongyang's efforts to encourage tourism. "Keeping a tourist who entered the country after state approval doesn't look good for a country that is trying to boost its tourism industry," he said.
The sixth detainee, the Korean-American missionary and tour operator Kenneth Bae, has been held for more than a year for alleged subversion. Some of those former guerrillas of the Kuwol unit in Seoul remember Newman as a handsome, thin American lieutenant who got them rice, clothes and weapons during the later stages of the war but largely left the fighting to them.
Newman oversaw guerrilla actions and gave the fighters advice, but he was not involved in day-to-day operations, according to the former rank-and-file members and analysts. Newman was scheduled to visit South Korea to meet former Kuwol fighters after his North Korea trip.
After he was detained, Newman was visited at a Pyongyang hotel by the Swedish ambassador, his family said in a statement, and he appeared to be in good health, receiving his heart medicine and being checked by medical personnel. Sweden handles American citizens' interests in Pyongyang as the North and the United States have no formal diplomatic ties.
Jeffrey Newman has previously said that his father, an avid traveller and retired finance executive from California, had always wanted to return to the country where he fought during the Korean War.
Before Newman, North Korea detained at least six Americans since 2009; five of them have been either released or deported after prominent Americans such as former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter travelled to Pyongyang.
The sixth detainee, Bae, has been held for more than a year Bae. He is a Korean-American missionary and tour operator whom the North accuses of subversion.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.