Virus lockdown at North Korea border town lifted

SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has withdrawn a varies lockdown in a major city near the border with South Korea.

But Kim during a ruling party meeting on Thursday also insisted the North will keep its borders shut and rejected any outside help as the country carries out an aggressive anti-virus campaign and rebuilds thousands of houses, roads and bridges damaged by heavy rain and floods in recent weeks.

During Thursday’s meeting, Kim said it was clear after three weeks that the virus situation in Kaesong was stable and expressed gratitude to residents for co-operating with the lockdown, Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

Thousands had been quarantined for weeks over coronavirus worries, state media said Friday.

KCNA also said Kim replaced Kim Jae Ryong as Cabinet premier following an evaluation of the Cabinet’s performance in economic affairs and appointed Kim Tok Hun as his successor.