Three Held
Three Americans are currently in the custody of the North Korean government, which has periodically used detained U.S. nationals as leverage to extract concessions from Washington. Those arrested have included evangelical Christians, whom North Korea’s government regards as a serious threat to its atheist state.
Warmbier’s death brought home the threat posed by North Korea to average citizens more than dozens of ballistic missile and nuclear tests. President Donald Trump denounced the death of 22-year-old, saying he suffered at the hands of a “brutal regime.”
Only a handful of tour companies have North Korea’s permission to arrange trips there. Warmbier traveled with Young Pioneer Tours, whose motto is “budget travel to destinations your mother would rather you stayed away from,” and also arranges trips to Iran, Eritrea, Ukraine’s Chernobyl and Afghanistan.
Young Pioneer stopped accepting American travelers on its tours of North Korea after Warmbier’s death because it considered the risk “too high.” The company said in a statement that it has been informed of the travel ban by the U.S. government.
Koryo Tours, another company that offers tours to North Korea, said the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang informed it of the ban. The mission acts a “protecting power” and an intermediary between North Korea and the U.S., which have no official relations.
North Korea denied torturing Warmbier, calling his death a mystery. The state-run Korean Central News Agency said the country provided him “medical treatments and care with all sincerity on humanitarian basis.”
Article Appeared @https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-21/u-s-bans-north-korea-travel-after-student-death-tour-firm-says